Um sofrer necessário: estudo etnográfico sobre o significado da vacinação de crianças na ótica das mães

Abstract

This work was aimed at understanding the situation experienced by the mothers who take their children to be vaccinated. By regarding them as a cultural group which shares the same experience, we attempted to describe their knowledge and feelings as wellas their values, beliefs and the meaning1 they attribute to their children`s vaccination. In order to better understand this whole networ of meanings, we used the theoretical methodological technique of ethnographyand, of Spradly2 as a data collecting method, the participant observation, the analysis of documents and the ethnographic interviews with the informants the mothers of the children vaccinated at the Child and Youth Institute in Juiz de Fora, Minas Gerais Brasil. Based on the data collected, a theme coined "necessary suffering" came up as being the most significant one in the mother`s view, becoming the core of the study. A better understanding of the situation experienced by the mothers with regard to their children`s3 vaccination allowed us a more holistic care, offering the mothers more safety in making up their minds on this issue.