Helena Akemi Wada Watanabe

Health advocacy in contemporary Brazil

The concept of health advocacy is presented by means of a description of its elements, practice and agents. The need to formulate this concept derives from one of the main functions of the university: the identification of social demands and the presentation of alternatives that aim at eliminating obstacles to their fulfillment. Social participation, as guaranteed by the 1988 Constitution, understood as an opportunity for the development of mechanisms for the construction of citizenship, especially as related to the conquist of the right to health, is emphasized.

Isolamento compulsório de portadores de hanseníase: memória de idosos

From 1924 to 1962, Brazil used compulsory internment of Hansens disease patients as one of the ways of controlling the disease in the community. After this policy ended, many patients continued to live in these units. The former Asilo Pirapitingui, now the Hospital Dr. Francisco Ribeiro Arantes, is the only old-style asylum for the socially determined internment of those suffering from Hansens disease. Through recorded and transcribed interviews of eight of those remaining, we sought to learn their history and the meaning of this isolation in their lives. The thematic analysis of the discourse enabled identification of the following analysis categories: Hansens disease; internment day-to-day life; the institution; current health conditions; and staying in the institution after the end of compulsory internment.

Agroecological urban agriculture from the perspective of health promotion

Abstract Urban agriculture has been the subject of many rese -arches in Brazil and worldwide, mainly with regard to the generation of work and income. This article aims to systematize the experience of the project Gathering sustainability, community practices on food security and urban agriculture, held in Embu das Artes, metropolitan region of Sao Paulo/Brazil, during 2008 through 2011, analyzing it from the perspective of Health Promotion. Research subjects were participant citizens, technicians of public ser -vices where the project was heald and technical team members of the project. Data were obtained through three systematization workshops, followed by ano-ther one when the results from the previous three were presented to the participants, and through an interview with a key informant. They were analyzed in the light of Health Promotion’s principles and fiel -ds of action. Findings revealed that ecological urban agriculture is a health promotion tool: it contributes to individual and community leadership strengthe -ning and their empowerment; it creates supportive environments. It also has potential for “knowledge” multiplication by those involved in subjects related to health, environment and income generation. Keywords: Health Promotion; Food and Nutritional Security; Urban Agriculture; Agroecology.

Intersetorialidade na saúde no Brasil no início do século XXI: um retrato das experiências

O objetivo foi investigar experiencias de intersetorialidade voltadas aos problemas de saude publica, iniciadas a partir de 2001, no Brasil. Para tanto, fez-se uma revisao utilizando a base de referencias Lilacs, por meio de selecao de relatos de acoes intersetoriais que abordassem problemas de saude publica no Pais e que envolvessem o setor saude. Onze artigos foram incluidos, em que se observaram falta de definicao de intersetorialidade, parceria com o setor educacao em dez projetos e raras avaliacoes de impacto e sustentabilidade. Mais informacoes sobre acoes intersetoriais sao urgentes para avaliar seu impacto, entender barreiras e limitacoes comuns e caminhos que as tornem mais efetivas.

Aging with physical disabilities: experience intersected by stigma, social isolation and finitude

Objetivo: Compreender a experiencia de envelhecer na perspectiva de pessoas idosas com deficiencia fisica. Metodo: Estudo de abordagem qualitativa que entrevistou 15 pessoas integrantes da Associacao Mato-grossense de Deficientes. Os depoimentos foram obtidos de Julho/2016 a Junho/2017 na regiao metropolitana de Cuiaba/Brasil. Os dados foram organizados em categorias tematicas e analisados com base na fenomenologia social de Alfred Schutz. Resultados: Evidenciou-se que o estigma permeia a experiencia da deficiencia fisica inclusive na velhice. A perpetuacao do estigma traduz-se em identidade deteriorada, isolamento social, ausencia de perspectivas e aceitacao da finitude como inevitavel, contribuindo para uma experiencia negativa na velhice. Conclusao e implicacoes para a pratica: A experiencia de envelhecer com deficiencia fisica tem carater intrinsecamente multidimensional, confrontando trajetorias de vidas complexas e contextos sociais hostis a diversidade corporal, os quais necessitam ser considerados nas politicas publicas, por gestores de servicos e profissionais envolvidos nos processos de cuidados a pessoa idosa com deficiencia fisica.

Agricultura Urbana Agroecológica en la Perspectiva de la Promoción de la Salud

Abstract Urban agriculture has been the subject of many rese -arches in Brazil and worldwide, mainly with regard to the generation of work and income. This article aims to systematize the experience of the project Gathering sustainability, community practices on food security and urban agriculture, held in Embu das Artes, metropolitan region of Sao Paulo/Brazil, during 2008 through 2011, analyzing it from the perspective of Health Promotion. Research subjects were participant citizens, technicians of public ser -vices where the project was heald and technical team members of the project. Data were obtained through three systematization workshops, followed by ano-ther one when the results from the previous three were presented to the participants, and through an interview with a key informant. They were analyzed in the light of Health Promotion’s principles and fiel -ds of action. Findings revealed that ecological urban agriculture is a health promotion tool: it contributes to individual and community leadership strengthe -ning and their empowerment; it creates supportive environments. It also has potential for “knowledge” multiplication by those involved in subjects related to health, environment and income generation. Keywords: Health Promotion; Food and Nutritional Security; Urban Agriculture; Agroecology.

Agricultura urbana agroecológica na perspectiva da promoção da saúde

Abstract Urban agriculture has been the subject of many rese -arches in Brazil and worldwide, mainly with regard to the generation of work and income. This article aims to systematize the experience of the project Gathering sustainability, community practices on food security and urban agriculture, held in Embu das Artes, metropolitan region of Sao Paulo/Brazil, during 2008 through 2011, analyzing it from the perspective of Health Promotion. Research subjects were participant citizens, technicians of public ser -vices where the project was heald and technical team members of the project. Data were obtained through three systematization workshops, followed by ano-ther one when the results from the previous three were presented to the participants, and through an interview with a key informant. They were analyzed in the light of Health Promotion’s principles and fiel -ds of action. Findings revealed that ecological urban agriculture is a health promotion tool: it contributes to individual and community leadership strengthe -ning and their empowerment; it creates supportive environments. It also has potential for “knowledge” multiplication by those involved in subjects related to health, environment and income generation. Keywords: Health Promotion; Food and Nutritional Security; Urban Agriculture; Agroecology.

Falar de suicido é também falar da vida e da qualidade de vida

The article under discussion is the result of exten-sive nationwide research and manages to touch-ingly reveal the dramatic situation of elderly indi-viduals who decided to end their own lives by sui-cide. It is an important contribution to elderly stud-ies, because it offers readers an opportunity to ex-pand their knowledge about why elderly peopledecide to advance their death. The text places theissue in the spotlight as an important public healthproblem: it reveals that elderly individuals whocommit suicide are the ones more likely not to be