[Alternative/complementary treatments: knowledge and practice of nurses in the 71st administrative district --Santo Amaro-Sao Paulo].

The purpose of this study is to investigate the nurses knowledge and actions taken regarding alternative or complementary therapies (AT or CT) at the County (municipal) Health Units of the 71st Administrative District, in Santo Amaro, SP. The research use a quantitative apProach and a qualitative analysis of the field data that showed that 89% of the nurses have confidence in AT/CTs but only 22.2% know the legal basis for its use and 5.5% had courses on the techniques. 44.4% use these therapies on themselves and 11.1% on their patients. Altogether 7 different AT/CTs were listed and classified in 5 Hill's groups. It was found that there is a need for including new knowledge as a complementary option for the promotion of the population's health.