Teaching psychiatric nursing/mental health: its interface with the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform and national curriculum guidelines

Abstract

This theoretical study addresses the education system for Psychiatric Nursing in an increasingly changing world of accelerated scientific and technological modernization. The objective is to discuss the pedagogy in Psychiatric Nursing, and its interface with the principles of the Brazilian psychiatric reform and national curriculum guidelines of nursing undergraduate courses. The theoretical foundation of the study consisted of constructs of the Brazilian psychiatric reform and national curriculum guidelines of nursing undergraduate courses and their relationship to factors constituting the pedagogy in psychiatric nursing. The study shows that it is not enough to identify technical issues regarding contents and teaching, didactic procedures, methods and pedagogical techniques; it is necessary to implement changes, using a new perspective and by daring to question the nature of knowledge and institutional psychiatric practices.