NURSING AND HEALTH ADVOCACY: DEVELOPMENT PROCESS OF AN EDUCATIONAL MANUAL

Abstract

Objective: to describe the development and validation of an educational manual for nurses on the practice of health advocacy in their professional experience. Method: the method used to develop the manual was composed of three stages carried out from 2018 to 2020: an integrative review of studies published from 2010 to 2018, development of the content, and validation of the educational manual by experts. Results: based on the integrative literature review, 91 final articles related to the theme of advocacy in health and nursing were selected, which subsidized the definition of four themes: The meaning and fundamental elements for the practice of advocacy in nursing; Advocacy in teaching and the involvement of other care actors; Advocacy as a professional, moral, and ethical obligation; Advocacy about specific population groups. The themes contributed to the development of the educational manual content. After submission and validation by specialists, it was possible to define the layout, size, number of pages, and final design of the educational manual, which will be printed and handed out to nursing professionals and students, and made available online. Conclusions: the elaboration and validation of the manual help to build knowledge related to the professional practice of the nursing team and the exercise of advocacy in health.