O papel do enfermeiro no cuidado integrado à pessoa em situação crítica

Abstract

This report is the culmination of the academic journey within the master’s degree in nursing, specializing in Medical-Surgical Nursing, in the area of the Person in Critical Situation, of the Institute of Health Sciences at the Universidade Católica Portuguesa. It aims portraying and describing the experiences lived during the internship period, in the form of critical reflection and framing them in the learning process. This should be analyzed based on the competencies recognized to the Master and Nurse Specialist, during the provision of integrated nursing care to the person and family. It is structurally divided into two distinct but complementary chapters, given the continuous and sequential nature of the internship period. Its main themes are the role of the Nurse in Infection Prevention and Control and the Organ Donation Process. Chapter I reflects the path taken so far, where a brief mention is made of the previous professional experience and the internship period in the 1st year of the master’s course, due to its importance in defining the objectives and expectations for the course that is now ending. Simultaneously, it serves as a sustaining basis, from which we evolved in the reformulation and deepening of knowledge and thinking. Finally, the competencies and skills that these experiences conferred on the exercise of the profession are also highlighted. We highlight here the skills inherent to the management of priorities, timely response, and continuous quality improvement in articulation with the performance in infection prevention and control, through the presentation of a proposal for optimizing the approach to patients with Carbapenem resistant Enterobacterales. Chapter II explores the internship period through the Domains of Common Competence of the Nurse Specialist. Here, the most relevant objectives developed during the contact are explained, associated with a critical-reflective analysis supported by theoretical foundations about the activities performed. These, in certain situations, are described and examined in the form of clinical cases and/or practical examples, to facilitate analysis and understanding. Among the main learning outcomes, the development of assertiveness of action and response stands out, based on critical judgment skills in the development of differentiated solutions in caring for the person and the family. In addition, and as main contributions, the work carried out in the areas of Infection Prevention and Control and Professional Learning should be mentioned, through the development of an audit tool for monitoring and characterization of practices and the performance of a Literature Review on the strategies used by nurses to improve communication with the relatives of organ donors, respectively. The approach to the objectives and activities, in the form of a written report, allows for a deep reflection on the skills and abilities acquired during this journey, which are capable of empowering and supporting decision-making and, consequently, optimizing and improving the provision of safe and quality care in future professional interventions. Finally, because of the reflections made, hypotheses were raised regarding the next professional goals, in a continuous search for professional differentiation and expertise.

Date of Award	29 Jun 2023
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Sílvia Patrícia Fernandes Coelho (Supervisor)