Autonomy for obstetric nurse on low-risk childbirth care

Abstract

Objectives:  to understand the cultural context presented in hospitals and its relation to the obstetric nurse's autonomous practice on low-risk childbirth care.

Methods:  ethnographic research performed in three public maternities in Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. Three managers and twenty-three obstetric nurses participated in this research.

Results:  distinctive on cultural, organizational and structural aspects of the hospital institution interfering directly with the obstetric nurse's autonomous practice. Among these aspects, professional appreciation on low-risk childbirth care contributes for the nurse's autonomy

Conclusions:  it was noticed that obstetric nurses undergo different contexts of action, which directly interfere with their autonomy on low-risk childbirth care and their decisionmaking abilities. It is necessary, then, to eradicate the relation of dominance and submission that it is still imposed by medical hegemony.

Key words
Obstetric nursing; Professional autonomy; Midwifery; Delivery rooms; Women's health