Community Health Agents and the situated caring to the male crack user in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil

Authors

  • Fátima Regina Gomes Tavares Programa de Pós-Graduação em Antropologia da Faculdade de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas da Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA) https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6668-4300
  • Talita Nunes Costa Universidade Federal da Bahia - UFBA

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.22478/ufpb.1517-5901.2022v1n56.55968

Abstract

ABSTRACT

This paper aims to discuss, from an ethnographical perspective, the healthcare provided by Community Health Workers, commonly known as ACS (Agente Comunitário de Saúde in Portuguese), to adult male crack users.  The research was conducted from June 2015 to September 2016 in a Family Health Strategy unit located in the city of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. ACS combines different approaches when dealing with this public. Such strategies have the same characteristics of the healthcare given by the ACS to men that don’t use this psychoactive substance, but in a more intensive way, which makes them unique. The ACS’s approach is based on “practical wisdom” built by the ACS on their daily field experience. The research showed that the ACS offers a “situated caring” to male crack users. The ACS’ approach is not the same of the practices based on the Harm Reduction Paradigm, which are limited considering the empirical context of the ACS’ work. The contrast between the health assistance given by ACS and the one from the Perspective of Harm Reduction indicates that they are complementary strategies for supplying healthcare to people.

Keywords: Family Health Strategy. Community Health workers. Harm Reduction. Men’s Health. Crack Cocaine.

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Author Biographies

Fátima Regina Gomes Tavares, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Antropologia da Faculdade de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas da Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA)

Doutora em Antropologia pelo Instituto de Filosofia e Ciências Sociais da Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). Professora no Programa de Pós-Graduação em Antropologia da Faculdade de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas da Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA). E-mail: fattavares@ufba.br

Talita Nunes Costa, Universidade Federal da Bahia - UFBA

Psicóloga. Mestre em Antropologia pela Universidade Federal da Bahia (UFBA) e doutoranda em Antropologia da UFBA. E-mail: talitanc@yahoo.com.br

Published

2022-07-28

How to Cite

Fátima Regina Gomes Tavares, & Nunes Costa, T. (2022). Community Health Agents and the situated caring to the male crack user in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. Política & Trabalho: Revista De Ciências Sociais, 1(56). https://doi.org/10.22478/ufpb.1517-5901.2022v1n56.55968