Abstract
Objective: Analyze scientific production on nursing management in the implementation of patient safety goals in public emergency units. Bibliographic review: Managing patient safety in the emergency department includes identifying and prioritizing risks, designing, and applying improvement plans, and evaluating the results of their implementation. When work is initiated in this area, it is likely that data and results of its own (or from nearby environments) are not yet available or scarce. Thus, the role of the leader in the process of initiation and implementation of the safety culture, it is proposed that this should lead the followers through effective communication, the promotion of professional development, through training, the encouragement of safe practices and the realization of feedback. Final considerations: Patient safety implies providing health carefree of harm that can be avoided, which implies the development of strategies that contribute to reduce the chances of failures in the processes, as well as human errors. Thus, it is necessary to expand the discussions on the purpose of work in emergency services aiming at patient safety, so that the worker can assume a critical posture.