PREVIEW NOTES

Continuous education of professionals in the hospital environment: an exploratory study

Glaucirene Siebra Moura Ferreira¹, Keila Maria de Azevedo Ponte², Antônia Eliana Araújo Aragão³, Lidyane Parente Arruda³, Ivonildo Sales Ferreira⁴

¹Lusophone University of Technologies and Humanities
²State University of Ceará
³School of Applied Theology
⁴Sobral Heart Hospital

ABSTRACT
Continuing health education is a strategy aimed at allowing professionals to act in a more empowered way, contributing to the hospital community and enhancing the interconnection of knowledge. However, a study to identify the views of professionals faced with involved with this qualification is relevant. Objective: To understand the perceptions of health professionals with regard to continuing education. Method: This is a descriptive and exploratory study adopting a qualitative approach. For data collection we will use semi-structured interviews and participant observation. The meetings will be recorded through notes, photographs and video. The study subjects will be 14 graduate professionals in the health area, associated with the Sobral Heart Hospital, Ceará, Brazil.  They will be selected by means of the availability of time for participating in the research. The processing of information will be done through the categorization of the participants' comments. After analyzing the information, the results will be presented, enabling us to reflect on the importance of continuing education.
Keywords: Health Education; Professional qualification; Hospital service of pacients´ admission

PROBLEM SITUATION AND SIGNIFICANCE

Continuing education in health is a way of making workers responsible for their training, and aims to achieve individual and collective competence in addition to strengthening the development of particular professionals and consequently of the health team. For this, empowerment, which is understood as growth and strengthening implying the activation of the analytical potential of individuals in terms of their life circumstances⁽¹⁾, should be encouraged. Permanent Education in Health Services is supported by federal legislation. In view of so many aspects of healthcare, which may jeopardize people’s lives, there is an urgent need for trained healthcare professionals who are secure in the performance of their duties, to act in a rational and reflective ways.
Based on the information above, it is essential to establish the learning path and the qualifications of professionals, and to provide patients with integral and effective health services to minimize health risks.
Thus, it is understood that it is important to reflect on the statements above, since it is understood that the process of continuing health education is important, both for society and for health professionals. However, there is a need to identify the perceptions of health professionals with regard to continuing education.

OBJECTIVES

To understand the perceptions of professionals of the Sobral Heart Hospital in terms of continuing education in this environment; to identify the knowledge of health professionals in relation to the theme; to describe the views of professionals with regard to continuing education; to develop continuing education strategies for the hospital environment and; to highlight the importance of the professional nurse as a facilitator of the research.

METHOD

This is a descriptive exploratory study which will adopt a qualitative approach. For data collection purposes, we shall use semi-structured interviews and participant observation, so that the meetings of the Culture Circles  are recorded through notes, photographs and videoing, in order to obtain reliable information. The Culture Circle is interested in the production of knowledge through inter-relationships between the authors and the knowledge involved, in a social practice that prioritizes the interests and comments of several characters⁽²⁾. The statements will be transcribed immediately after the meetings in order to record all the information obtained. Inclusion criteria will be: graduates in the health area, represented by Doctors, Nurses, Physical Therapists, Nutritionists and Pharmacists, all members of the healthcare team of Sobral Heart Hospital, Ceará. Nursing staff will be represented by seven nursing coordinators; Medicine by four medical coordinators; Physical Therapy by the Physical Therapist in charge; Nutrition by a coordinator and Pharmacy by a Pharmacist responsible for the laboratory.  By signing the Instrument of Consent (IC), agreeing to participate in the study, this suggests that we should have at least 75% attendance in the Culture Circles. The exclusion criteria will be professionals who do not have the time to participate in all stages of the data collection process.
Data collection will take place through meetings with the participants as part of Culture Circles. The criterion of saturation of information during discussions will be used to end the sessions.
From this perspective, one of the researchers, a nurse, will be the facilitator of the Culture Circle and will act in such a way as to encourage the participants to debate the issues presented. To do so, she will have to express support for each subject during the presentation, which will be recorded. The nonverbal communication of each research subject should also be observed, and the results should be evaluated immediately after each meeting of the Culture Circle. For this purpose, the data will be grouped and transcribed, and the nurse researcher in charge will be helped by a previously qualified observer.
Data processing will be done through the categorization of the participants' comments. Consequently, after analyzing the data, the results shall be presented, allowing the interpretation and subsequently the publication of the results.

REFERENCES

1. Aragão AEA, Pagliuca LMF. Serviços hospitalares: empoderamento das pessoas com deficiência física na construção de espaços acessíveis. Online braz j nurs [ serial in the internet ]. 2009 [ cited 2012 mar 20 ] 8(2). Available from: http://www.objnursing.uff.br/index.php/nursing/article/view/j.16764285.2009.2396/509

2. Heidemann, ITSB. A promoção da saúde e a concepção dialógica de Freire: possibilidades de sua inserção e limites no processo de trabalho das equipes de saúde da família. [ thesis in the internet ]. Ribeirão Preto: Escola de Enfermagem de Ribeirão Preto; 2006 [ cited 2012 apr 02 ]. Available from: http://www.teses.usp.br/teses/disponiveis/22/22133/tde-15012007-170858/.

PROJECT DATA
Dissertation Project of the Academic MSc in Education of the Lusophone University of Technologies and Humanities. Approved by the Ethics Committee of the State University of Vale do Acaraú - UVA on 02/02/2011, (number 1075/11).
Participation in the research: All authors contributed to the preparation of this article.
Advisor: Dr. Antônia Eliana Araújo Aragão

Recebido: 12/04/2012
Aprovado: 03/09/2012