OBJECTIVE To know the production of theoretical approaches on issues related to offshore work and the work of offshore nurses.
METHOD Integrative literature review conducted in the databases of LILACS, BDENF, MEDLINE, SciELO and Index PSI.
RESULTS We selected 33 studies published in national and international journals between 1997 and 2014. The thematic analysis corpus resulted in four central themes: offshore work environment; amid work adversities, an escape; structuring of offshore health and safety services; in search of safe practices.
CONCLUSION This study contributes to the offshore work of nurses in relation to the nature of work, acting amid adversities and the restless search for safe practices in the open sea.
Extraction and Processing Industry; Petroleum; Occupational Risks; Occupational Health Nursing; Occupational Health; Review