De alma ata à regulamentação do Sistema Único de Saúde: uma experiência de participação social em Belo Horizonte

Abstract

The Brazilian health policy was, until the late seventies, devoted entirely to the private sector. During the military government, there were social movements that were opposed to the economic and social policy that led to the recession and inequality. Among them were movements of trade unionists, students, rural workers, and some sectors of the Church. Professionals who practiced community medicine joined the social movements for health. Through the Ministry of Health, lay apostolate group of the Catholic Church, the community of Jardim Montanhês neighborhood began to take action for the benefit of its population. This study aims to understand the construction of the Health Center Jardim Montanhês, in Belo Horizonte, considering the mobilization of the community in the context of social movements in the eighties. To rescue community mobilization memory during the study period opted It is a qualitative research using the methodology of the Case Study. They were conducted semi-structured interviews nine with social actors who participated in the history of the health center. In the content analysis we used the thematic analysis. The results indicated that the Health Center was directed by a council of community leaders of the neighborhood and the direction was democratic and participatory. The first manager, appointed by the Municipality of Belo Horizonte, ran the health center in partnership with the community. Following the democratic achievements of health reform, the creation of the National Health System and the municipalization of health, the Health Center is now managed by the Municipality of Belo Horizonte, and the health council continued active exercising social control. The results indicated that there was a connection between the events in Brazil and Jardim Montanhês neighborhood community in the period of construction of the health center. In the country grew participation in movements for the strengthening of Primary Health Care, by Health Care Reform and the health system organization. In Belo Horizonte, a community built and directed democratically a health center, with the collaboration of teaching-service integration.