Experiências dos usuários do Centro de Referência da Pessoa Idosa/Belo Horizonte - MG e as repercussões em seus cotidianos

Abstract

Population aging is a global reality. The scenario in Brazil is no different. This change in the Brazilian age structure brings a series of implications in the social, economic and political spheres of the country. The Elderly Reference Center (CRPI) of Belo Horizonte/Minas Gerais is an important public policy tool of the Directorate of Policies for the Elderly, contributing to the guarantee of the rights of the elderly, becoming a reference for the aging population in the city. The objective of this study is to investigate how the elderly perceive their experiences in the service and what the repercussions are on their daily activities. This is a quantitative survey with 82 CRPI users, using a questionnaire with 54 questions about sociodemographic information; participation in the CRPI; and possible changes in daily life. A descriptive analysis of the variables was performed, which allowed us to describe general characteristics of the group studied. The categorical variables related to the sociodemographic characteristics of the sample, participation in the CRPI workshops, and the perceived change in daily activities after the CRPI experience were analyzed in relation to frequency distribution. Excel was used to organize the data, while IBM SPSS software (version 26.0, SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL, USA) was used to perform the statistical analyses. The results indicated that the majority of participants were between 60 and 80 years old and that most of them were women, with approximately 30% of the participants being married. The majority of users self-identified as black or mixed race, followed by almost half who identified as white. The majority of participants had completed high school. The majority of users attended the service three or more days a week, and just over a third had been linked to the service for 6 years or more and attended 3 or more workshops. The activities that most frequently presented positive changes were social interaction, leisure and self-care, while the occupations that were least mentioned as having changes were those related to domestic care, instrumental activities of daily living and eating. 91.5% of participants stated that participation in the CRPI improved their health. The predominance of elderly women in the service corroborates the phenomenon of the "feminization of aging", highlighting the need to consider the specificities of female aging when formulating public policies. The intersectoral nature of the service is presented as an essential characteristic for strengthening rights and occupational engagement, offering meaningful activities that promote well-being, autonomy and positive changes in the daily lives of the elderly. The high satisfaction of users and the regular participation of elderly people in the CRPI indicate that the service has fulfilled its role of offering meaningful occupations, promoting citizenship, social inclusion and strengthening support networks, evidencing its value for participants. The importance of initiatives that value socialization, leisure and self-care as pillars for promoting dignified and responsible aging for the population is reiterated. Furthermore, they highlight the need to integrate the experiences of the elderly into the planning and implementation of public policies, in order to meet the demands of an increasingly diverse and aging population.