OBJECTIVE: Identify how the undergraduate nursing students relate to community therapy (CT) as a strategy for care of the family. METHODS: This was a qualitative study in which 12 undergraduate students were interviewed about their perceptions of the practical content of the "family health" discipline, which is taken during the 2nd year of nursing at the Federal University of São Paulo. The main question of the interview was: How do you perceive the CT in nursing education as it relattes to the care of the family? Data were analyzed using the content analysis method proposed by Bardin. RESULTS: Two descriptive categories were found: CT, as a strategy for nursing care with the family - it´s relationship with the discipline of family health; CT as a strategy for student reflection regarding the dynamics of their families. CONCLUSION: This practice can promote a paradigm shift, because it puts the family at the center of care. This research showed the need to improve reflective listening, using questions that broaden the possibility of reflection, in search of strategies to deal with problems.
Community health nursing; Nursing education; Family practice