[Study to assess the level of knowledge of the Security Law in nurses]

Proposal of the recent Security Law, which regulates access of irregular immigrants to health services , provoked much debate and uprising. However, little attention was paid to its approval, after substantial modification. This study was performed to assess how much nurses know about this law, by means of a questionnaire issued to 200 nurses working in one hospital. Results showed that they had been informed by the media, 51% were aware that the law regards both physicians and nurses and 40% stated that immigrants were not obliged to present identification. Only 19% of the sample correctly stated that denouncement to the authorities is not obligatory; the remaining 81% believed the contrary to be true . A need for greater information was expressed by 72%. The outcome of the study confirmed the need for greater information on this topic.