FAMILY HEALTH PROGRAM IN BRAZIL: CRITICAL REFLEXIONS REGARDING HEALTH PROMOTION

Abstract

The Family Health Program (FHP)started 20 years ago in Brazil and it requires to be reflected upon for updates and improvements. The Brazilian FHP was inspired on the Canadian health policy, and aims to be a strategy to decrease the risks of injuries and contemporary health conditions based on the bio psychosocial model approach. However, the concepts of community, family, gender and ethnicity must be regarded and understood for better results of the strategies employed by health teams and community agents. The purpose of this documental analysis was to compare the Brazilian system (SUS) with the Canadian System to understand causes and social determinants of health. For this, we have confronted the findings of the Brazilian and Canadian programs, with the scientific literature on the subject. The results demonstrate that the Brazilian FHP needs a restructuring process to achieve the full concept of health promotion. Among the main requirements, it is highlighted a new role for community health workers, better conditions and increase of professional health care teams and system reorganization regarding the roles played bywomen, men and different ethnic groups.