The importance of hospital playroom and Occupational Therapy from the perspective of the nursing team of a public hospital in the Federal District

Introduction: The care provided to hospitalized children under the comprehensive perspective should not be limited simply to drug interventions and rehabilitation techniques. Children must be considered in their own singularities and they should have all known resources available to express themselves, and overcome hospitalization and the illness experience. In this sense, the playing during the period of illness and hospitalization represents a preferred means to keep contact with the world around them. Objective: To ascertain the views of the nursing team about the importance of a playroom in the hospital and the role of the occupational therapist in this context. Methods: A questionnaire was applied to the professional nursing staff of the pediatric unit of the third largest hospital in the Federal District. Results: Results demonstrated that the professional nursing team considers the playroom important and recognaizes the occupational therapist's value, but they are not aware of the occupational therapist's role and the influence of the playing in the nursing routine, Conclusion: It is extremely necessary that playful activities increasingly gain ground in hospital settings through all subjects involved in the health-disease process in which children are inserted.