Percepções de terapeutas ocupacionais que atuam na infância sobre suas práticas com as famílias

Abstract

In recent decades, evidence on Family-Centered Practice (FCP) has increased, and occupational therapists working in child care have transitioned from a practitioner-centered approach to a Family-Centered Practice approach. Investigating professionals' perceptions about family-centeredness is necessary, since their contribution can provide relevant information about the PCF. Considering there is a gap between theory and practice in FCP and, also considering the findings in Brazil and its use in public policies were restricted, this research aimed to (1) measure and describe the self-perception of occupational therapists from Minas Gerais who work in childhood about their practices with families; (2) investigate whether there is a relationship between the MPOC-SP domains and the professional's length of experience, length of clinical experience in childhood, work in different types of services and regions of professional practice; (3) investigate occupational therapists' understanding of the FCP concept. To address the purpose of the research, a descriptive mixed method study was conducted. In the quantitative phase, 58 occupational therapists participated by answering the MPOC-SP and a demographic questionnaire. The statistical analysis was carried out by extracting data into Excel and also using SPSS, version 21.0. In the qualitative phase, 10 professionals who participated in the 1st phase of the study, responded to individual interviews. The interviews were transcribed and content analysis was carried out to arrive at the final categories. The quantitative results showed that the respectful treatment domain was the best rated by OTs with a score of 6 (very much) and, on the other hand, the domain of promoting general information was the worst rated, with a score of 4 (more or less). In the qualitative phase, categories were highlighted that suggested there are premises, principles and elements that therapists have internalized in their practices and are close to the FCP, however, there are several challenges to implementing this approach and there are still misunderstandings in the professionals' conception about the FCP. The study pointed out although occupational therapists from Minas Gerais are familiar with some relevant aspects about FCP, there still seems to be a lot of influence of the biomedical model on professional practices and there is still a long way to go in Brazil, both in services and in public policies.