Cirugía: un contexto diferente de cuidado

nursing, in its professional practice, operates in multiple contexts; one of them, the surgical center, defined as the set of physical environments giving the surgical team the necessary facilities to perform surgical procedures in an efficient manner and under maximum safety conditions. this article has the following purpose: describing and analyzing the care context in the surgical center from the patients and nursing team's point of view. qualitative methodology focused on the fundamental theory. data were collected through observation, informal and formal interviews to 20 patients, 19 nursing assistants and 8 nurses working in different second level surgical settings in the valle de aburra. results: a theoretical scheme comprising twelve categories arises from data collected. this study shall present the category comprised in the following context: working and being in a different area. it comprises the following subcategories: attention attracted by the environment, entering, being operated and going out, working under stress and team working. final considerations: the surgical context, as any sphere, has an influence on nursing care; it supposes challenges for the nursing team regarding interactions, as they should be efficient and effective. the patient's status, his/her vulnerability, the risk implied by the anesthetic and surgical procedure, plus the simultaneousness of tasks faced by the nursing team makes their work stressful; therefore, the surgery service requires a nursing team capable of working under stress.