[Collective responsibility of nurses in their involvement in their professional organizations]

This study has as its objective the discussion of the nursing professionals' responsibility regarding their participation in professional associations, such as the Brazilian Association of Nursing (ABEn), the Regional Board of Nursing and the Nursing Union. The investigation was carried out with nurses from a private and a public educational institution and also from a private institution of assistance. As a result, it was verified that the participation of nurses in the organizations mentioned above is still scarce, but there is already some awareness of the need for integrating them.