How COVID-19 Has Affected Frontline Workers in Brazil: A Comparative Analysis of Nurses and Community Health Workers

Author(s)

Lotta, Gabriela ; Coelho, Vera S. P. ; Brage, Eugenia

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: JOURNAL OF COMPARATIVE POLICY ANALYSIS; v. 23, n. 1, p. 11-pg., 2020-11-06.

Abstract

The need to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic has created challenges for services delivered by frontline workers (FLW). This paper analyzes how the Brazilian government regulated the reorganization of Primary Health Care (PHC) and how FLW responded to these initiatives, comparing the roles played by nurses and community health workers. Given the multilevel health system, it was expected that the high level of ambiguity would stimulate innovations. However, data show that the ambiguity created different situations for each profession. While nurses were able to adapt their work and act with more autonomy, CHW lost their role in the policy. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 19/13439-7 - Therapeutic itineraries of Bolivian women in the central region of São Paulo: conditions of life, work and access to health
• Grantee: Eugenia Brage
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral