OBJECTIVE: This study aims to address difficulties reported by the nursing team during the process of changing the management model in a public hospital in Brazil. METHODS: This qualitative study used thematic content analysis as proposed by Bardin, and data were analyzed using the theoretical framework of Bolman and Deal. RESULTS: The vertical implementation of Participatory Management contradicted its underlying philosophy and thereby negatively influenced employee acceptance of the change. The decentralized structure of the Participatory Management Model was implemented but shared decision-making was only partially utilized. Despite facilitation of the communication process within the unit, more significant difficulties arose from lack of communication inter-unit. Values and principals need to be shared by teams, however, that will happens only if managers restructure accountabilities changing job descriptions of all team members. CONCLUSION: Innovative management models that depart from the premise of decentralized decision-making and increased communication encourage accountability, increased motivation and satisfaction, and contribute to improving the quality of care. The contribution of the study is that it describes the complexity of implementing an innovative management model, examines dissent and intentionally acknowledges the difficulties faced by employees in the organization.

AIM: To assess the interference of nail polish on the reading of peripheral oxygen saturation in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease on the step exercise. METHODS: In this study, there was the inclusion of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, current non-smokers, of both sexes. Four different colours of nail polish were used in the present study (base, light pink, red and brown), randomly distributed among the fingers of the right hand, with the corresponding fingers on the opposite hand being controls. Saturation was measured at rest, with and without the polish, and also during the 4th, 5th and 6th minutes of the exercise programme. RESULTS: The experimental universe included 42 patients with ages of 62.9±8.7 years. In the exercise considered, the red colour reduced it in the fourth minute of the exercise (p=0.047). In contrast, the brown colour reduced saturation at rest and also during the course of exercise (p=0.01). CONCLUSION: In patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the red and brown colours interfered with the reading of the peripheral oxygen saturation during exercise. This study is registered at the Brazilian Register of Clinical Trials (Registro Brasileiro de Ensaios Clínicos) under No. RBR-9vc722.

OBJECTIVE: to characterize nutritional status and variables that predict nutritional changes in children with congenital heart disease. METHOD: a cross-sectional study undertaken in two health institutions between January and June 2009, using a questionnaire with questions about nutrition, applied to 132 children under two years of age who had congenital heart disease. Children who had additional serious illnesses were excluded. RESULT: the predominant percentile values and Z scores were concentrated within the range of normal levels. The Z scores, however, presented negative variations with a deviation to the left. In the analysis of predictive factors, the occurrence of immediate and acute malnutrition was related to a decrease in skinfold thickness (decrease in subscapular skinfold thickness, while immediate malnutrition was related to a high Apgar score. Chronic malnutrition was related to female children with higher ages. CONCLUSION: it is evidenced that it is necessary to carry out nutritional strategies which improve prognosis, so as to widen the nursing care directed at these children.

OBJECTIVE: to analyze the impact and burden of care on the Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) of caregivers of individuals with a spinal cord injury (SCI). METHOD: cross-sectional observational study carried out by reviewing medical records and applying questionnaires. The scale Short Form 36 (SF-36) was used to assess HRQOL and the Caregiver Burden Scale (CBScale) for care burden. Results were analyzed quantitatively. Most patients with SCIs were male, aged 35.4 years old on average, with a predominance of thoracic injuries followed by cervical injuries. Most caregivers were female aged 44.8 years old on average. RESULTS: tetraplegia and secondary complications stand out among the clinical characteristics that contributed to greater care burden and worse HRQOL. Association between care burden with HRQOL revealed that the greater the burden the worse the HRQOL. CONCLUSION: Preventing care burden through strategies that prepare patients for hospital discharge, integrating the support network, and enabling access to health care services are interventions that could minimize the effects arising from care burden and contribute to improving HRQOL.

OBJECTIVE: to evaluate the characteristics of sleep and the factors associated with the quality of sleep in elderly patients receiving outpatient chemotherapy treatment. METHOD: cross-sectional study with 140 elderly patients (51.2% female, average age 69.8 years) with stage III or stage IV cancer (67.9%), undertaken in a university hospital in the state of São Paulo in 2010. The following instruments were used: sociodemographic and clinical characterization questionnaire, validated by specialists; Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index; Piper Fatigue Scale-reviewed; and a scale for the subjective measurement of pain. RESULTS: the majority of the elderly (62.9%) had a score compatible with poor sleep quality. On average, the duration of sleep was 388.0 minutes, latency was 44.6 minutes and efficiency of 83.8%. Through multiple logistic regression analysis, an increase of 21% in the probability of having poor sleep quality was observed for each single-point increase in the intensity of the pain. CONCLUSION: nursing interventions aiming to promote better sleep quality for elderly patients with cancer must include measures for pain control.

OBJECTIVE: the aim was to evaluate the association between the intensity of musculoskeletal pain and reduction in work ability among nursing workers. METHOD: a cross-sectional study, involving 592 nursing staff in a public university hospital in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The Brazilian version of the Finnish questionnaire for calculating Work Ability Index was used, whose score varies from 7 to 49 points. The score was dichotomized as reduced work ability (7 to 36 points) and good/excellent ability (37 to 49 points). The intensity of musculoskeletal pain over the previous week was evaluated, using a numerical pain scale. RESULT: 43.3% of the participants had reduced work ability and 48.8% reported strong to unbearable pain. Even after adjusting for potentially confounding factors (function and length of service in the function), the workers who mentioned strong to unbearable pain were four times more likely to be classified in the group with reduced work ability. CONCLUSION: A positive association was determined between intensity of musculoskeletal pain and reduction in work ability. It is necessary to adopt intervention measures in the organizational structure, so as to promote/restore work ability.

OBJECTIVE: To identify predisposing factors for peripheral intravenous puncture failure in children. METHODS: Cross-sectional cohort study conducted with 335 children in a pediatric ward of a university hospital after approval of the ethics committee. The Wald Chi-squared, Prevalence Ratio (PR) and backward procedure (p=0.05) tests were applied. RESULTS: Success of peripheral intravenous puncture was obtained in 300 (89.5%) children and failure in 35 (10.4%). The failure rates were significantly influenced by: presence of clinical history of difficult venous access, malnourishment, previous use of peripherally inserted central venous catheter, previous use of central venous catheter, and history of phlebitis or infiltration. In the multivariate model, being malnourished and having previously been submitted to central venous catheterization were the predisposing factors for the failure. CONCLUSION: The failure rate of 10.4% is similar to that identified in analogous studies and was influenced by characteristics of the children and intravenous therapy. In association with this, malnutrition and previous use of a central venous catheter were the most important variables influencing increase in peripheral intravenous puncture failure.

OBJECTIVES: understand the Social Representations about needlestick injuries elaborated by Nursing Technicians and analyze how these representations influence their conducts. METHOD: the data, obtained by interviews, were processed using ALCESTE software and their analysis was based on Serge Moscovici's Social Representations Theory. RESULTS: it was evidenced that, after the accident, these professionals take care of the affected area. Then, they report the accident, motivated by the fear of catching HIV and hepatitis. The different feelings experienced are due to this fear and the way they were forwarded by the institution, reflecting in the cause they attribute to their accident. CONCLUSIONS: it was verified that knowledge about the accident as a whole is very incipient in this professional group, demanding continuing education and greater emphasis on this subject in professional training. It is expected that this study draws public authorities and health institutions' attention to the problem and that it modifies Nursing Technicians' Social Representations about percutaneous exposure.

OBJECTIVE: to identify, among the Academic Master's courses, run by Brazilian post-graduate nursing programs, analyzed in the three-yearly evaluation (2007-2009) of the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES), the course load stated by the programs for training Master's degree students. METHOD: a descriptive, quantitative, documental study, with data collected in July 2010, through consulting the above-mentioned Coordination's reports in the item "Programs' Proposals", in the Table of Indicators, available on the Internet. RESULTS: discrepancies were found between the course loads of the 32 Academic Master's courses in the different regions of Brazil, with the smallest having a course load of 315 hours and the largest, 1530 hours. CONCLUSIONS: greater discussion is needed about the course load necessary for training the competencies and skills for the profile desired for the students on graduating from the course. The study provides advances in nursing knowledge, as previous investigations on the same issue were not identified. It is hoped that Academic Master's courses in nursing may see themselves in this process and may review their pedagogical decisions in the light of the new models of training/qualification of nursing professionals, centered in science, technology and innovation in the area.

OBJECTIVES: to evaluate the older adults' perceptions of their quality of life (QoL) in two long-stay care facilities in Pouso Alegre and Santa Rita in Sapucaí, in the State of Minas Gerais, Brazil , and to identify the sociodemographic and health variables which interfere in this perception. METHOD: a cross-sectional epidemiological study of 77 older adults resident in institutions. The instruments used were: personal characterization; WHOQOL-bref and WHOQOL OLD. RESULT: the highest average obtained in the instruments was: the "Social Relationships" domain in the WHOQOL-bref (68%) and the "Sensory abilities" aspect in the WHOQOL-OLD (73.7%). The variables age, sex, physical activity and level of schooling have a significant correlation with the WHOQOL-bref and the variables sex and leisure have the same with the WHOQOL OLD. CONCLUSION: older adults who are younger, with higher levels of schooling and who undertake physical and leisure activity have, on average, better perceptions of their QoL. The older adults' QoL in this study had higher rates than that reported in the literature and was similar to that in the community. The results suggest the need to train those involved with older adults in institutions so that they may develop strategies which promote the adaptation, adjustment and maintenance of QoL.

OBJECTIVE: to undertake an integrative literature review on the issue of "Children as carers". This is an emerging topic in the provision of health care, but nevertheless has a low profile in the literature. METHODOLOGY: this study was based in a survey of nine databases of scientific articles, using as descriptor: child, young, caregivers, lay carer and nursing role, as well as the corresponding terms in Portuguese. 21 articles were analyzed. RESULTS: these were organized into six categories - factors which motivate the child to take on the role of caregiver; these children's characteristics; tasks performed; time spent in caring; consequences of providing care and the role of the nurse in partnership with these children and their families. CONCLUSION: the children as carers are a focus of attention relevant to nursing practice, this issue representing an opportunity for investigation in Portuguese-speaking countries, as no article was found on the subject in Portuguese. In addition, with this first study in Portuguese, a work of the creation of a bibliography is begun, allowing an awareness of the issue and the identification of ways to respond to the families involved, in line with their needs.