The insertion of the community health agent in the family health team

• Grant number: 07/01559-0
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: September 01, 2007
• End date: February 28, 2009
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Nursing - Public Health Nursing
• Principal Investigator: Maria Cecília Puntel de Almeida
• Grantee: Karen Namie Sakata
• Host Institution: Escola de Enfermagem de Ribeirão Preto (EERP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This master thesis proposal has as object of study the insertion of the communitarian health agent - ACS - in the Family Health team in real situations of work. The Family Health Strategy faces many challenges in its implementation as effective and problem solver strategy in the Primary Health Care, in terms of team work (nurses, nursing technicians and auxiliaries, odontologists, physicians, among others) and also regarding the insertion of this new professional, the ACS. The theoretical reference is based in the work process of the health team, contemplating the aspects of the: social and technical division of work; technical intervention and professional autonomy in the work; common assistant project and of interaction and communication. The general objective consists in learning and understanding how the communitarian agent is inserted in the Family Health team regarding the team work in health, highlighting the aspects of interaction and articulation of actions/activities and of the complementarity and interdependency of the technical interventions. The study has a qualitative approach and the participant observation instruments and semi-structured interview are used. The field of investigation will be the Basic Health Unit Ernesto Che Guevara in the Jardim Maria Casagrande Lopes of the East District of the Basic Health Network in Ribeirão Preto. The subjects will be the ACSs, observed during their actions/activities of work and participation in the interview; and the other health professionals of Family Health teams, who will participate in the interview. The data interpretation will be performed through the thematic analysis and will focus on two main analytical dimensions: the dimension of the ACS s technical intervention and the dimension of the relations of interaction with the Family Health team. The results will contribute to a more harmonious, productive and effective insertion of the ACS s work articulated to the health team in the assurance of the integrality and care to the family. The ethical issues of this study are based in the Resolution number 196, October 10th, 1996 of the National Health Committee. The project was approved by the Ethical Committee of the College of Nursing at Ribeirão Preto University of São Paulo and authorized by the Municipal Health Secretary of Ribeirão Preto.