[Demands of psychiatric care in a university hospital]

This is a cross-sectional study that aimed to describe the psychiatric demand in a university hospital in the city of Cuiabá, state of Mato Grosso, Brazil, and to know the current situation of the service to this demand. The data were collected from the inpatient medical records in a university hospital, from June to August, 2009, in a total of 551 records. Despite being considered by the literature as unprepared, nursing is the professional category that most identifies the psychiatric demand in this hospital. The treatment plan to this demand was restricted to medication, nine evaluations of psychology and thirteen consultation-liaison psychiatric service, without a significant involvement of nursing. The approach of emotional and/or mental aspects results in the improvement in the quality of nursing care, and there is a need for the nurses to qualify for that. To make it happen, we propose a reflection on the need for the consultation-liaison psychiatric service in this hospital.