Dados do Resumo

Título

Nursing at the forefront of comprehensive and integrative cancer care

Introdução

Nursing plays a fundamental role in comprehensive and integrative health care, offering assistance that goes beyond the simple administration of medical treatments: it is based on a holistic approach, aligned with the assumptions of Integrative and Complementary Practices, which sees the patient as a complete and multidimensional being, whose physical, emotional, social and spiritual needs must be cared for in harmony and through joint action with other care professionals.

Objetivo

To present data and discuss the role of nursing in comprehensive and integrative cancer care, in line with the conceptual bases of Integrative and Complementary Practices/ICP.

Métodos

Review of literature published between 2019 and 2024, in the electronic database PUBMED, using the following MESH descriptors, found in the title or abstract: “Nursing”/“Nursing Care”; “Complementary Therapy(ies)”/“Integrative Therapy(ies)”/“Holistic Therapy(ies)”/“Altenative Therapy(ies)”. 172 articles were found; 24.4% were excluded due to duplication or other themes. 130 articles were analyzed.

Resultados

Of the articles, 62.3% used the descriptor “complementary therapy(ies)”. The average number of articles was 21.7/year; 28 articles were published in 2021 and 27 in 2019/2023 (the years with the highest number of publications). More than 50.0% (52.3%) were published in nursing journals. The most prevalent topics were isolated integrative therapy/IIT (44.6%), nursing (24.1%), mental health (16.2%), pain management (13.8%), cancer (10.0%). Of the studies focusing on nursing, we noted a concern to discuss the profile of competence, reflections on the role of the professional and daily practice, intra-disciplinary communication, academic training and the experience of undergraduates. Of the studies with IIT, acupuncture/music therapy (19.0% each), reflexology (8.6%), reiki/aromatherapy (6.9% each), the most frequent. Were 39.2% of reviews; of these, 35.3% were systematic reviews or meta-analyses. Intervention studies accounted for 31.5%, 68.3% of which were randomized clinical trials.

Conclusões

The literature shows that nursing is at the forefront of comprehensive and integrative care, which has been reflected as an example of technical and humanized assistance. We can see its commitment to ICP through numerous publications in journals in this professional area. By treating each patient as a unique individual, with their own stories and needs, nurses foster an environment of welcome, respect and dignity; this improves clinical outcomes, but also strengthens the bond between patient/healthcare team, and a more positive treatment experience.

Financiador do resumo

not applicable.

Palavras Chave

Integrative Practices; Complementary Therapies; Nursing Care