Objective: This study aimed to propose a methodology for identifying the nursing workload in the Emergency Department (ED).
Methods: this is methodological research, undertaken in a public general hospital in the municipality of São Paulo, Brazil, in the areas: triage, shock room, emergency room, suturing room, and medication/procedures for adult and pediatric patients rooms, using different strategies and instruments. Due to the characteristics of the data collection, distinct samples were obtained in each of the areas.
Results: The average daily workload, in hours, corresponded to: triage 48; shock room 30.9; emergency 170.6; observation of adult patients 293.6; observation of pediatric patients 108.7; medication/procedures in adult patients 175.5; medication/procedures in pediatric patients 60.4; and suturing 7.9.
Conclusion: The instruments used for data collection were shown to be appropriate and made it possible to construct a methodological proposal for identification of workload of nursing professionals in E.D. in a general public hospital.