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Edit orialNURSI NG I NTERVENTI ONS: ALTERNATI VES I N CONSOLI DATI ON
Em ilia Cam pos de Car v alho1
I
n the first decades of the 20th century, the concern to develop Nursing as a science was intensified,generat ing a m ovem ent t o incorporat e research m et hods used by pioneers from ot her knowledge areas. This sear ch, st ill cur r ent ly obser ved, has enabled gr eat advances for good qualit y car e, how ev er, t her e ar e st ill
doubts about which procedure is m ore efficient for care to patients in several situations, respecting the autonom y, legal prot ect ion and t echnical com pet ence of professionals t o perform t he nursing pract ice.
Clinical pr ocedur es aim at r ecognizing and pr edict ing t he ev olut ion of com plicat ions in t he healt h condition, besides treating or preventing them . Regarding the therapy, there are several strategies and techniques
applicable by nurses in t heir pract ice. The m ost used is t he one t hat gat hers t he t echnical procedures. Ther e is gr eat int er est in t he use of t hese t echniques, som e ent it led com plem ent ar y ( applied as supplem ent s t o conv ent ional t her apy ) or alt er nat iv e ( r eplacing t he t r adit ional m et hod) . I n Br azil t her e ar e
alr eady public ser vices( 1) t hat deliv er y car e t o pat ient s applying, am ong ot her s, m usic t herapy, t herapeut ic
t ouch, behavioral change, relaxat ion, acupunct ure and use of herbs. Lit erat ure also out lines t his relevance; around 200 t housand it em s are indexed wit h t he t erm alt ernat ive or com plem ent ary t herapies in only one of t he elect ronic healt h dat abases. Most part of t hese it em s is relat ed t o nursing and nursing care.
Alt ernat ive t herapies are recognized by t he Feder al Nu r sin g Cou n cil COFEN( 2) as pract ices deriving,
m ost ly, from east ern cult ures, pract iced or perform ed by t rained pract it ioners, and t ransferred from generat ion to generation, not being linked to any professional category. Practices such as acupuncture, iridology, chiropraxy, m assot herapy, am ong ot hers, are highlight ed. The m ent ioned inst it ut ion also recognizes alt ernat ive t herapies as a specialt y or qualificat ion of Nursing professionals, provided t he t it le is obt ained aft er finishing a program
recognized by a t eaching or congenerous inst it ut e, wit h a m inim um course load of 360 hours( 3).
Nevertheless, in Brazil, there are still restrictive considerations to the use, by nurses, of som e of these t herapies, such as acupunct ure, in t he view of ot her professional associat ions. Changing t his underst anding
can benefit the im plem entation of strategies, by qualified nurses, and extend its use, through a better knowledge
by the category of the benefits that they can bring to people who use them( 4), as well as through the integration
of this content in the professional training, which is still restrict( 5).
The evidences originat ed from int ervent ion st udies of t hese t herapies have shown t hat t he degree of knowledge varies over each one of them , as well as that there are controversial opinions regarding the efficacy
of their therapeutic use. However, in a general way, all of them com bine benefits to patients by their use, even though they should be assessed regarding their validity, relevance and applicability in certain situations, before being adopt ed in t he pract ice.
The Lat in Am er ican Jour nal of Nur sing encour ages t he subm ission of r epor t s of m et hodologically
consist ent int ervent ion st udies using com plem ent ary pract ices.
1Mem ber of t he Edit orial Board of the Lat in Am erican Journal of Nursing, Full Professor of t he University of São Paulo at Ribeirão Pret o College of Nursing,
WHO Collaborat ing Cent re for Nursing Research Developm ent , Brazil, e- m ail: [email protected]. Rev Latino- am Enferm agem 2009 setem bro- outubro; 17( 5) : 603- 4
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REFEREN CES
1 . Min ist ér io da Saú de ( BR) . Por t ar ia 9 7 1 de 0 3 m aio 2 0 0 6 . Est abelece a Polít ica Nacion al das Pr át icas I n t egr at iv as e Com plem ent ares no Sist em a Único de Saúde ( SUS) . Diário Oficial da União, Brasília, 4 m aio 2006. Seção 1, p. 20. Brasília: I m pr ensa Oficial; 2006.
2. Conselho Federal de Enfer m agem . Resolução COFEn nº 04/ 95 de 18 j ulho 1995. Dispõe sobr e at iv idades em Terapias alt ernat ivas. Bol. I nf. COREn. 1995; 18( 4) : 8.
3 . Conselho Federal de Enfer m agem . Resolução COFEn nº 1 9 7 de 1 9 m ar ço. 1 9 9 7 . Est abelece e r econhece as Terapias Alt er nat iv as com o especialidade e/ ou qualificação do pr ofissional de Enfer m agem . I n: Conselho Regional de Enfer m agem . Docum ent os básicos de enferm agem . São Paulo: COFEn; 1997.
4. Kurebayashi LFS, Oguisso T, Freit as GF. Acupunt ura na enferm agem brasileira: dim ensão ét ico- legal. Act a Paul. Enferm . 2 0 0 9 ; 2 2 ( 2 ) : 2 1 0 - 2 .
5. Trovo MM, Silva MJP, Leão ER. Terapias alt ernat ivas / com plem ent ares no ensino público e privado: análise do conhecim ent o dos acadêm icos de Enferm agem . Rev. Lat ino- am Enferm agem . 2003; 11( 4) : 483- 9.
Rev Latino- am Enferm agem 2009 setem bro- outubro; 17( 5) : 603- 4 www.eerp.usp.br/ rlae
Nursing interventions...
