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Ethnography in Primary Health Care: Theoretical-Methodological Reflections on Pharmaceutical Services
Samara Jamile Mendes1, Silvana Nair Leite2, Livia Maria de Souza Gonçalves2
1Department of Pharmacy, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-000, SP, Brazil.
Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland)
|September 22, 2025
Summary
Ethnographic research in primary health care (PHC) reveals how pharmacists actively shape pharmaceutical services. Participant observation is key to understanding these culturally situated practices and their response to health needs.
Area of Science:
- Social Sciences in Pharmacy
- Anthropology in Health Research
- Primary Health Care (PHC) Research
Background:
- Increasing integration of social sciences and anthropology in pharmacy practice research.
- Ethnography provides a critical lens for analyzing health phenomena and bridging theory-practice gaps.
- Need for in-depth understanding of pharmaceutical services within complex health-disease processes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present the theoretical and methodological trajectory of an ethnographic study on pharmaceutical services in PHC.
- To analyze how pharmacists actively shape their practices within the PHC setting.
- To explore the construction of pharmaceutical services through culturally situated practices.
Main Methods:
- Ethnographic study utilizing participant observation.
- Fieldwork conducted in three PHC units in São Paulo (166 hours).
- Thematic inductive analysis of data recorded in field diaries, developing conceptual categories and an analytical framework.
Main Results:
- Pharmaceutical services in PHC are actively constructed by pharmacists.
- Practices are culturally situated and respond directly to community health needs.
- Participant observation proved a valuable methodological and interpretive strategy.
Conclusions:
- Ethnography, particularly participant observation, is essential for understanding nuanced pharmaceutical practices in PHC.
- Pharmacists play an active role in shaping and delivering culturally relevant pharmaceutical services.
- Context-sensitive methodological approaches are crucial for health research in pharmacy.
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