This study aims to identify social support, networks, and roles in families of nursing faculty members, using the theoretical framework of health promotion in family nursing. The scenario of the study was an Undergraduate Nursing Course at a University in the interior of Brazil. Three families of nursing professors responsible for subjects in the professionalization cycle were selected as study subjects. In-depth interviews, the genogram, and ecomaps were used for data collection. Data was categorized by thematic content analysis. In the three families under study, relatives and the expanded family constituted the main source of support. Other important persons were female employees without blood relations. The social support network included the school, work, church, and leisure sites. The identification of roles and supports allowed the relatives to strengthen coping mechanisms in order to deal with the daily stress factors, as well as to act in health promotion.
Health promotion; Role; Social support; Family nursing; Occupational health