A PSICOLOGIA HOSPITALAR NA ATENÇÃO À URGÊNCIA E EMERGÊNCIA: Percepção da enfermagem em uma Unidade de Pronto Atendimento da cidade de Patos de Minas – MG

It is essential to understand how nursing teams perceive the role of the hospital psychologist (HP), especially in settings that prioritize rapid response and patient stabilization, such as the Emergency Care Unit (UPA). This study aims to assess the nursing staff's perception of the HP's role in a UPA. Nineteen nursing professionals (technicians and nurses) were interviewed between March and May 2023, using a sociodemographic questionnaire and guiding questions to measure their perception of the HP's activities. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (mean, standard deviation, and percentage) and qualitative methods, including descending hierarchical classification (CHD) by distance matrices, correspondence factor analysis (CFA), similarity analysis (SA), and word cloud analysis, all processed through the Iramuteq software. The sample was predominantly female (78.9%; n=15), with a mean age of 36.9 years (sd=8.3), ranging from 21 to 50 years. Additionally, 84.2% (n=16) were nursing technicians. Six-word classes emerged: reception, active listening, initial patient management and hospital adaptation through a multidisciplinary approach (involving social workers and psychologists), challenges of teamwork among nursing professionals, intervention demands related to family and staff, and overall perception of patient needs. It was observed that initial management and hospital adaptation had little correlation with the global perception of patient needs, which suggests that nursing staff experience difficulties in recognizing and addressing patients’ emotional responses in the early hospitalization process. Furthermore, the HP was perceived as a key support figure for the team, particularly in handling stressful and challenging situations. These findings highlight the need to develop strategies that enhance the socio-emotional resources of the nursing staff and promote humanized hospital care.