Qualificação da equipe de enfermagem para atuação em unidades de pronto atendimento

Abstract

Introduction: Health education in Brazil, guided by the National Curriculum Guidelines, seeks to articulate theory and practice in the training of critical, ethical professionals committed to the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS). In Nursing, persistent challenges such as the technical division of labour and gaps in the integration between education and services demand training processes that foster autonomy, social responsibility and the ability to deal with complex realities. Permanent Education in Health (PEH) is recognised as a key strategy to reorganise training, care and management practices, supporting the continuous updating of workers, reflection on care and improvement of the quality of assistance. In this context, it is essential that the professional qualification of nursing teams be continuous and connected to the real demands of Emergency Care Units (UPAs). Objective: To describe the opinion of nursing staff about their professional qualification for working in UPAs and to identify, from their perspective, how academic training and permanent education activities contribute to practice in these services. Method: Descriptive qualitative study conducted with nursing staff from the UPAs of Palmas, Tocantins, Brazil. Semi-structured interviews were carried out and submitted to thematic content analysis, supported by the IRaMuTeQ software and the use of Descending Hierarchical Classification. The study was approved by the Research Project Evaluation Committee of the Fundação Escola de Saúde Pública de Palmas and by the Research Ethics Committee of the Federal University of Tocantins. Results: Seventeen nursing professionals participated in the study. The corpus (17 interview texts) generated 128 text segments, with 84.75% utilisation, grouped into five classes and three analytical categories: (1) Academic training and preparation for the UPA: valuation of internships, practical classes and experiences in emergency and urgent care as the basis for current performance, alongside the perception that initial training is essential but has been affected by a reduction in practical activities in some curricula. (2) In-service qualification/PEH: positive perception of the effects of training activities, especially those organised by the Emergency Education Unit, on technical safety, adherence to protocols and teamwork, while recognising limits related to number of places, timetables and difficulty in releasing staff to take part. (3) Daily work as a space for knowledge production: the work shift is recognised as a pedagogical environment in which exchanges between colleagues, the management of time-dependent cases and contact with a wide range of clinical situations allow professionals to “learn from each patient” and to resignify knowledge built during initial training and later courses. Conclusion: Initial nursing education constitutes an indispensable basis for working in UPAs, but it is not sufficient on its own; it requires greater practical immersion in emergency care settings and stronger integration between education and services. Permanent Education in Health and institutional arrangements for in-service qualification, such as activities linked to the Emergency Education Unit, strengthen nursing practice in the UPAs of Palmas, although they still require protected time, broader and more equitable access and closer alignment with the specific needs of each unit. The findings reinforce that daily work is also a space for knowledge production, highlighting the importance of recognising and organising the work shift itself as a formative locus. It is recommended to expand equitable access to educational activities and to use active methodologies, such as simulations, workshops and feedback strategies, articulated with the everyday reality of the service, in order to support technical, relational and organisational gains in emergency care.