The nurse teacher. Construction of a new professional identity La enfermera formadora. La construcción de una nueva identidad profesional A enfermeira formadora. A constru o de uma nova identidade profissional

Objective. To represent how a new identity is being constructed by nurses initiating their activities as teachers. Methodology. In 2010, a descriptive-interpretative qualitative research was conducted of four cases of nurse teachers from Nursing Schools. Aspects of teacher identity and management of critical incidents in the classroom were reviewed. The information was obtained through a structured survey and the data underwent analysis of contents. Results. The nurses surveyed state that the teaching exercise is a culmination stage of clinical nursing. Teaching confers them stability in their professional life; however, they report that the complexity of the educational practice poses a big challenge. They feel responsible for the formation of future nursing professionals. In spite of defining themselves as constructivists in the way of teaching, they are governed by a technical conception on the way of approaching the educational practice. They attribute the critical incidents to which they are exposed to the types of students entering the universities; these turn out uncomfortable and do not feel responsible for their development. These incidents are lessons to better face similar situations in the future. Conclusion. The nurses participating in this study are facing their new role as teachers of human resource, seeking to construct a new identity different from what they had when working in direct care of individuals. Objetivo. Representar cómo se construye una nueva identidad la enfermera que inicia su actividad como formadora. Metodología. En 2010 se realizó una investigación cualitativa de corte descriptivo-interpretativo de cuatro casos de enfermeras profesoras de Escuelas de Enfermería. Se revisaron aspectos de la identidad docente y del manejo de incidentes críticos en el aula. La información fue obtenida mediante entrevista estructurada y a los datos se les hizo análisis de contenido. Resultados. Las enfermeras entrevistadas afirman que el ejercicio docente es una etapa de culminación de la enfermería clínica. La labor de la docencia les confiere estabilidad en su vida profesional, sin embargo aseguran que la complejidad de la práctica educativa les plantea un gran desafío puesto que se sienten responsables de la formación de los futuros enfermeros. A pesar de definirse como constructivistas en la manera de ense ar, se rigen por una concepción técnica en la forma de abordar la práctica educativa. Los incidentes críticos a los que se exponen los atribuyen al tipo de estudiante que ingresa, les resultan incómodos y no se sienten responsables del