Objective:

To know the importance of Rehabilitation Nursing in Portuguese Intensive Care Units (ICUs).

Methods:

Secondary analysis of the national evaluation survey of the organization of rehabilitation care in Portuguese intensive care units.

Results:

In Portugal there are 2.9 nurses per unit, with specialized training in rehabilitation. This value increases in units where rehabilitation is based on a mixed model and decreases in units that resort to specialized external teams. 40% of these professionals do not perform functions in their area of specialization and only 26.4% perform full-time functions. Units with full-time rehabilitation nursing more frequently assess the physical condition at discharge (38.7 versus 8.9%); however, these professionals do not participate in the post-discharge evaluation in any ICU. There are no observable differences in care outcomes among ICUs that are part of rehabilitation nurses and those who do not.

Conclusion:

Nurses with a specialty in rehabilitation nursing are present in most of the national ICUs and are an important part of the care provided.

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