Abstract
Objective
To analyze nurses' perceptions on care management and its intervening factors for tuberculosis control in Primary Health Care.
Method
A descriptive and qualitative study conducted with 29 nurses who worked on tuberculosis control in 23 Basic Health Units in Belém, Pará. The data were produced by individual interviews, using a semi-structured script, and submitted to thematic content analysis, as proposed by Bardin.
Results
Two thematic categories emerged, namely: “Care management by nurses for tuberculosis control in Basic Health Units” and “Intervening factors in the application of care management for tuberculosis control in Basic Health Units”.
Conclusion and implications for the practice
The nurses' knowledge about the care policy and management for tuberculosis control needs to be strengthened and, although nurses are aware of their competences, they are unable to fully implement them due to issues related to poor organization services, centralization of activities on them, low multiprofessional cooperation, scarcity of supplies and personnel, and socioeconomic issues related to tuberculosis patients.
Keywords:
Primary Health Care; Public Health Nursing; Health Management; Perception; Tuberculosis