Intensificação do trabalho: percepções da equipe de enfermagem

Abstract

Work intensification is a current issue, which is related to the degree of energy spent by the worker in carrying out activities. It is the requirement of a greater commitment from the professional, which can be physical, intellectual, psychic or a combination of these elements. In the context of hospital nursing, this theme is extremely relevant, since it is a profession that has the largest number of health workers and performs their work continuously and 24 hours a day. Thus, this study has the following objectives: to know the factors that contribute to the intensification of work from the perspective of nursing professionals in adult inpatient units and to describe the consequences of the intensification of work reported by these professionals. This is a study with a qualitative approach, of the descriptive-exploratory type. The study was developed in three adult hospitalization units of a University Hospital in the State of Rio Grande do Sul and had nurses and nursing technicians as participants. Data collection was carried out through semi-structured interviews and observation. The data produced were submitted to the content analysis proposed by Bardin. All ethical aspects were respected according to Resolution 466, and the project was approved by the Research Ethics Committee. Results: Twenty-one nursing professionals participated in the study. After analyzing the data, two categories emerged: “Work intensification: collaborative factors” and “Consequence of work intensification from the perspective of nursing workers”. In the first category, there are aspects such as the high work demand associated with the undersizing of workers, concomitant activities, the level of severity of the patients, as well as the low quality of equipment and the physical structure of the work environment, which collaborate for the intensification of the work environment. same. In the second category, consequences such as physical and psychological health problems in professionals, interpersonal conflicts and feelings of dissatisfaction are identified. Conclusion: work intensification is related to organizational factors, working conditions and patient characteristics and has consequences for the physical and emotional health of professionals, interfering with the quality of care provided and the worker's quality of life.