Perceptions of nursing professionals about the use of patient safety computerization

Abstract

Objective: Getting to know the perceptions of nursing professionals about the use of computerization in promoting patient safety. Methods: Qualitative research performed at a hospital in the southern region of Brazil. Data collection was performed in November 2016, through a sociodemographic questionnaire and recorded interviews, guided by the question: “Tell me about the relationship between computerization and patient safety in this hospital”. The transcribed statements were submitted to the thematic content analysis proposed by Bardin. Results: Among the participants, 21 were nurses and 31 were nursing technicians. From the discourses, the following categories were created, Information Technology Contributions for the promotion of safe care, and Information Technology Fragilities: indirect implications for safe care. Conclusions: The participants perceived the computerized system as a resource that promoted greater patient safety. However, there is a need to improve the infrastructure and the technical capacity of the team for an efficient use of the system.