The experience of nurses as an accompanying family member

Abstract

Objective: To describe the experience of nurses in the condition of the hospitalized patient's family companion. Methods: Qualitative study conducted with nine nurses working in a public and teaching hospital, in the South of Brazil. The data was produced by Dynamics of Creativity and Sensitivity and analyzed by the presuppositions of discourse analysis in its French chain. Results: From the analysis of the data produced the following themes emerged: the professional knowledge as intervening factor: from frustration to confrontation; being a nurse, being in the accompanying condition and decision making and; the challenges of nursing in the accompanying condition. Conclusion: The experience as an accompanying family member had repercussions on the "professional self" and the "family self", provoking considerations both in the professional life and in the nurses' personal life, which triggered reflections and modifications in their praxis.