A formação de um grupo de hipertensos para o autocuidado: uma pesquisa-ação

Abstract

Throughout the world the lifestyle of people have changed drastically in the last decades, especially in developing countries like Brazil. These changes brought new ways of getting ill, among these illnesses stand above chronic and degenerative diseases. One of the illnesses of most incidence in contemporary society is hypertension, including in Brazil, which is in high prevalence and is of a great risk to diseases in the circulatory system. Brazil's Family Health Strategy is prioritizing the cope of this pathology and it needs sustainable actions in this matter. Considering this, it turned out to have a great value to develop a study in order to find out the perception of a team of the Family Health Strategy regarding the formation of groups, concept and importance of self-care and Popular Health Education. Promoting from that the formation of a group of self-care to users carriers of hypertension under the light of the Popular Health Education. As data collection instrument an interview was performed in order to acknowledge the perception of such professionals regarding the subject approached. To collect other kinds of information we used a field journal. The data analysis was based on Bardin's content analysis. At the end of the study, we were able to observe that the workers of the chosen team have a limited perception of health education, understanding it as only a way of preventing diseases and as a way of educate and inform the population. They do not understand the model proposed by the Popular Health Education. The practices currently developed by the team are basically lectures performed in the community without schedule, not even following a regular basis. Problems such as only part of the team developing the actions of health education, some professionals not willing to be part of such practices and a very tight or incompatible schedule are some of the existing hinders found in the reality studied. The workers of the team studied presented some experience working with user groups. They have good expectations of which positive results a group of hypertensive patients may bring, however, most of them do not know the importance of self-care to those patients. It was necessary to develop workshops to the discussion of such subjects with this team. These workshops made possible the confirmation of the results of this research. It was possible to observe that the whole team needs a better involvement in health education activities, a proper schedule, and an ongoing education to the discussion of this and other important subjects. After these workshops, the team decided to organize an experimental action following the models of Popular Health Education to the hypertensive patients in their area, showing excellent results locally. We believe this was a seed to the formation of a group of hypertensive patients in order to develop self-care guided by the Popular Health Education, as well as the start of changes in the educational practices developed by the team studied.