Emancipatory drug practices: building projects with Primary Healthcare workers

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Social Medicine
• Healthcare Policy

Background:

• Implementing effective drug practices in Primary Healthcare is crucial for addressing community health needs.
• Existing healthcare policies and practices in drug management face limitations and contradictions.
• Empowering healthcare workers is essential for developing responsive and evidence-based interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop projects for implementing emancipatory drug practices within Primary Healthcare settings.
• To foster critical engagement among healthcare workers regarding drug policies and their impact.

Main Methods:

• An emancipatory action research methodology grounded in historical-dialectical materialism was employed.
• The study involved Primary Healthcare workers (care providers and management) in São Paulo.
• Thirteen workshops were conducted, facilitating critical discussions and project design.

Main Results:

• Seventeen healthcare workers participated, engaging in discussions on health needs, the social dimensions of drug use, and policy limitations.
• Four intersectoral implementation projects were collaboratively designed.
• Discussions critically examined public healthcare policies and practices related to drugs.

Conclusions:

• Emancipatory workshops empowered workers to understand their role in the health production process.
• Workers gained a stronger ability to develop and implement tools addressing health needs related to drug production, circulation, and consumption.
• The study strengthened workers' capacity to respond to health needs by understanding social processes surrounding drugs.