Abstract Objective: to analyze the factors that influence nurses’ decision-making process in Ibero-American university hospitals. Method: a case study with a qualitative approach and of the multicenter type, carried out with 30 Ibero-American nurses. The data were collected through semi-structured interviews, analyzed by thematic categories and interpreted according to the theoretical framework of Creating Effective Organizations. Results: it was identified that the decision-making process permeates the development of nurses’ own competencies, suffering influences from health management training and previous individual experiences. The following categories emerged: Technical-scientific preparation in decision-making; Hierarchization of the decision-making process; and Autonomous professional practice. Conclusion: the absence/presence of a rigid hierarchy, as well as technical-scientific preparation and autonomy, are factors that limit or expand the range of possibilities in nurses’ decision-making, with consequences in care management. Thus, discussions about this theme should be encouraged, in order to promote nurses’ autonomy for decision-making and favor a reduction of bureaucracy in the processes that prevent/hinder advances in these services.