Reception in the hospital environment: perspectives of companions of hospitalized patients

Reception procedures are one of the main guidelines concerning the health care production, even though the studies on this subject are focused upon primary health care. This paper aimed to understand the way reception is experienced by the companions of hospitalized patients and discuss their difficulties while accompanying the patients in a hospital environment. This is a qualitative study, conducted with 77 companions of patients hospitalized in a university hospital in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Data were collected through interviews and examined by the content analysis. According to the companions' perceptions, the reception procedure is associated to clarifying rules and routines, as well as meals delivery; the main difficulties were related to the physical structure and the noise in the hospital environment. A need for reconsidering the established models for health assistance is pointed, as well as the importance of improving health care practices based on light technology.