Nurses and doctors turnover: An impasse in the implementation of the family health strategy

Abstract

The research analyzed the causes for turnover rate of doctors and nurses in family health strategy teams with at least two years of implementation on March 2006 in Vale do Taquari, Rio Grande do Sul State. It is a quantitative and qualitative study identifying 31 teams in 25 towns, and the turnover rate was established by year from 1999 to 2005 by professional category. There was no turnover for doctors and nurses in 1999 and 2000. Doctor turnover was 5.9% in 2002; 32.1% in 2003; 25.8% in 2004; and 64.5% in 2005. Regarding nurses, it was 27.7% in 2001; 47% in 2002; 17.8% in 2003; 41.9% in 2004; and 22.6% in 2005. The analysis of semi-structured interviews with 7 doctors and 7 nurses appointed as main causes for turnover: poor work links, fragmented education, authoritarian way of managing, no links with the community, and poor work conditions. Thus, it is necessary to make changes regarding labor links, work conditions, and education for health workers and managers, seeking for the integrality in health practices.