This study was developed with 152 employees of a psychiatric hospital of the state network of Paraná in 2008. Aim: to report the experience of applying the Arch Method in the data collection of a nursing study. The data used for the description of the experience were obtained through the application of the Arch Method. The development of the steps of this method requires critical analysis and reflection of the study object and well-designed planning so that the results are achieved. The experience of applying the Method in the research to construct a benchmark for mental healthcare allowed the reflection-action-reflection, from the experiences of the work quotidian of the subjects, and presented a possibility for research data collection It contributed to the humanization of the care provided and mobilized those involved for the significant learning of the reality, in a dynamic and complex form.
Methodology; Data collection; Research; Nursing
