The discourse of ethics in nursing education: Experience and reflections of Brazilian teachers – Case study

From a scenario of political and technological changes in work and health education, the purpose of this study was to understand the ethics discourse in nurses' education process in Brazilian nursing schools. A research was performed with a qualitative approach, characterized as a case study, involving six schools of a region in the south of Brazil. The data were collected by focal groups involving 50 teachers. The results were organized in three categories: (1) experience and motivation to teach ethics and bioethics, (2) indicators of change identified in global and local contexts and (3) challenges in the education of ethics, values and related themes. The teachers have highlighted complex elements related to scientific, educational and professional contexts, and pointed out the need for a critical perspective on the professional scenario and on their own situations as nurses and educators. The analyzed discourse brings to light the topic of ethics, seen as peculiar to the present day and in intimate connection with the daily routine of clinical, pedagogical and political professional practices. The findings suggest that the reflections on nurses' ethics education should not be limited to discussing content and pedagogical strategies but should be extended to include a commitment to the adoption of values in professional practice and to the process of the construction of a professional identity.