Aims and objectives: To analyse the process of elaborating social representations about pressure injury preventive measures by the nursing team (nurses and nurse technicians) and how this process relates to preventive practices for hospitalized patients.
Design: Qualitative study, with the application of the theory of social representations in its procedural methodological approach.
Methods: The study was carried out in an inpatient clinic of a public hospital in the state of Rondônia, Brazil. Totally, 28 nursing professionals in the medical clinic sectors who had worked directly with patient care for more than 6 months participated. The data were collected between July and September 2021 via in-depth interviews with the application of a semi-structured instrument. Analysis was carried out with the help of ALCESTE software, which performed a lexicographic analysis, and also via thematic analysis. The COREQ guided the presentation of the research report.
Results: The social representations were developed based on the professionals' symbolic beliefs about the visibility/invisibility of the results of applying preventive care. These symbolic constructions mobilized positive and negative feelings among the nursing team, which guided the classification of prevention practices as being of greater or lesser priority among other care activities. There were favourable attitudes among professionals, which included applying prevention measures in their daily routines, and unfavourable attitudes of non-adherence to the institution's protocol for preventing pressure injuries.
Conclusions: The nursing team's perception of pressure injury prevention is influenced by symbolic, affective, values, and social dimensions. Non-adherence behaviours are attributed to the belief in the invisibility of prevention outcomes, resulting in a reluctance to implement preventive measures.
Relevance to clinical practice: Understanding the subjective logic that explains the thinking and actions of the nursing team suggests the need to incorporate discussions on beliefs, values, sentiments, and attitudes of nursing professionals into educational programs on pressure injury prevention.
Patient or public contribution: No public contribution.
Keywords: nursing care; patient safety; pressure injury; prevention; social representations.
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