Head nurses' opinion and knowledge about their activities

Abstract

Considering nursing supervision assistance as a process in which the nurse is responsible for promoting continuing education, based on previous orientation, the authors established as the aim of this study, the identification of the amount of knowledge that nurse supervisors have about their activity. To carry out this investigation, the method chosen for evaluation was quantitative and descriptive, obtained through surveys. Results pointed out that practice of supervision is an effective training strategy for recently hired nurses. It was possible to identify that the functions of supervision have similarities to control functions and that the main goal of it is to assure quality in health care. The problems faced during supervision, are in the majority of cases, solved by the supervisor himself. Evidence found in this study led to a situational diagnosis of the practice of supervision and it should be used as strategic planning for qualifying nursing programs designed for this function.