[Management and quality: in search of nursing]

Quality management involves everyone in the hospital to a different degree. The head-nurses are key elements for the realization of these programs. Throughout this discussion regarding management, this article explores the links between quality management and nursing. The interviews conducted show that management has over-invested in quality. Therefore it will respond to problems concerning work organization and will also allow a professional acknowledgement. The analysis confirms that the quality values come before that of a pragmatic conception of health care based on a disjunctive viewpoint, both linear and timeless. Furthermore, because nursing is not considered as a discipline, quality healthcare remains undefined. The recommendations focus on the manager's role and particularity on the definition of the principal problems of different services.