Representações sociais de trabalhadores da estratégia de saúde da família sobre o princípio da equidade no cuidado em saúde aos portadores de doenças sexualmente transmissíveis

Abstract

To the principle of equity many meanings are attributed, which when anchored to different ethical values may influence the way to perform health assistance. Sexually Transmittable Diseases (STD) have been showed as situations that culturally bring stigma, prejudice and discrimination to their carrier. This scenario is a fertile ground for old and new representations to be elaborated. Thus, aiming to contribute to the problematisation of discourse of professionals’ strategies to the Health Care of an STD carrier under the equity perspective, this study had as objectives: to analyse the social representations about the equity principle for the workers of Health Family Strategy (ESF) in the Health Care of STD carriers and to discuss the existent relationship between the social representations of these workers over the equity and the Health Care of STD carriers. The qualitative approach was based on the theoretical-philosophical Social Representation Theory. Twenty healthcare professionals of Bachelor level, among which nurses, medical doctors and dentists, who work in Primary Healthcare of ESF units of City of Viçosa – MG were interviewed. Discourses were organised with OpenLogos software and analysed according to the thematic content analysis proposed by Bardin. Four categories emerged from the interview analyses: SUS’s principles in the representations of ESF workers; representations about the equity in SUS and in daily healthcare work; healthcare needs and the equity in Health Care of STD carriers; connections and flows in the Health Care network of STD carriers. The findings of this study show there is not a unified understanding of the principle of equity among the interviewed professionals. However, they recognize that equity is based on the defence of a justice situation to be established in view of people’s different healthcare needs. In “ways to perform” the principle of equity in the Health Care of the STD carrier, it was identified the deconstruction of a curative, biological and fragmented view, given the valuing of relational technologies to a more equanimous and adequate care. The representations also point the existent barriers of the own healthcare system to a structural and organisational conformation of healthcare services in the form of a user-centred care model. It is expected that results from this study may allow a contribution to deliver important restructuring of the work process of primary healthcare professionals and in the organisation of the service network for STD carries that remodel professional practices in the healthcare system through an inclusive logic of the concept of diversity.