Abstract

SAMPAIO, Francisco; SEQUEIRA, Carlos  and  LLUCH-CANUT, Teresa. The psychotherapeutic intervention in mental health nursing: Concepts and challenges. Revista Portuguesa de Enfermagem de Saúde Mental [online]. 2014, n.spe1, pp.103-108. ISSN 1647-2160.

BACKGROUND: In Portugal, Regulation No 129/2011 states that nurses specialized in Mental Health Nursing have the competence to provide psychotherapeutic care. However, there is no operational definition of the term "psychotherapeutic intervention" nor any model of psychotherapeutic intervention created by nurses and/or based on nursing knowledge. This fact makes the assertion of nurses specialized in Mental Health and Psychiatric Nursing (MHPN) as a professional with knowledge and skills to provide psychotherapeutic care more difficult. AIM AND METHODS: In order to understand what can be done in Portugal to promote and advocate for the execution of psychotherapeutic interventions, by nurses specialized in MHPN, as an autonomous nursing intervention, we have decided to prepare this theoretical paper. Thus, we have proceeded to a literature review about the subject and its analysis as a way to find a possible solution for the identified problem. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The development and evaluation of a psychotherapeutic intervention model in nursing seems to be a possible solution to allow nurses specialized in MHPN to carry out psychotherapeutic interventions as autonomous nursing interventions. The model must be based, necessarily, on nursing knowledge (developed by nurses) as a way to consolidate the autonomous aspect of the intervention model, which must respond to nursing diagnoses and not to medical diagnosis.

Keywords : Psychotherapy; Nursing; Mental health.

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