Conhecimento da equipe de enfermagem nas complicações do diabetes mellitus em emergência

Abstract

Objective: To investigate nursing staff knowledge in relation to acute complications of diabetes mellitus (DM) in emergency services. Methods: A qualitative study conducted with 18 nursing staff members working in an adult emergency hospital service. Inclusion criteria were: 1) having worked for at least six months in the emergency service; 2) having no plans of being absent from the service. Semi-structured interviews were recorded and conducted individually. The thematic analysis was used for organizing and analyzing data. Results: Four themes emerged: 1) recognizing the signs and symptoms associated to severity in diabetes; 2) determining the urgency of care for people with diabetes; 3) the sequence of nursing care for acute complications of diabetes; and 4) recognizing risks and complications during nursing care. Conclusion: The nursing staff working in the studied adult emergency service displayed knowledge in relation to how to care for acute DM complications, however, there were limitations regarding routine care practices.