How leader nurse communicates in a hospital: an analysis of discursive practices

Objective: To understand how nurses realize the communication in the exercise of leadership. Method: Qualitative, exploratory, descriptive and cross-sectional study. Were interviewed 13 clinical nurses from a hospital. Data collection occurred through interview, using semi-structured roadmap. To organize and analyze the data, we used the theoretical-methodological framework of the analysis of discursive practices. The study received a favorable opinion by the ethics and Research Committee (Opinion nº 476.254). Results: The use of communication in the nurse’s leadership is important in driving the team, but presented a one-way perspective, keeping the leader/ subordinate relationship. Conclusion: The communication is configured predominantly as a hierarchical process, unidirectional, little open to dialog and focused on to order maintenance in the hospital, reproducing the assumptions of classical management and guided by the technical and social division of the profession.