This article has the purpose of verifying the laboural experiences of the nursing professionals and its consequences on their mental health. The research was made with nursing professionals of the Instituto de Cardiologia in Porto Alegre, who were dismissed from their activities during 2003 due to mental and behavioral disturbances (brief depressive disorder, recurrent depressive disorder and general anxiety), diagnosed according to CID-10. The data were collected through semi-structured individual interviews, and for their interpretation the technique of Content Analisys was used. The results show that aspects of work contributed to the process of falling ill of these professionals, such as the nature of the caretaker activities, overburden of tasks and dificulties of interpersonal relations. It was further verified the perception of the individuals as to the role of the organization vis-à-vis their dismissal, in order to increase the discussion about management of people and health promotion at work.
mental health at work; nursing; management of people
