Health as a right and the care of the self: conception of nursing professionals.

Objective: To analyze health as a right from the perspective of care of the self, in the conception of nursing professionals.

Method: Qualitative study, carried out in a Federal Hospital of the city of Rio de Janeiro, with the participation of 10 nurses and 20 nursing technicians through interviews recorded, transcribed and analyzed in light of the Discursive Textual Analysis.

Results: Two categories emerged: Health as the right of professionals and their "non-right" to health; and Care of the self for the health professional: work and torture.