Grupalidade como estratégia de cuidado/ produção de saúde de idosos

Abstract

The object of the study was analyse the elderly's perception of group as a care strategy. Qualitative and descriptive research. For data collection, we used semi-structured interview and field diary of the intervention carried out through an Operative Group. The data were treated and analyzed according to Content Analysis, thematic type, resulting in the following categories: 1 - Notions of Self-Care and Access to the Health Care Network from the perspective of the elderly; 2 - Sexuality from the perspective of the elderly; 3 - Groupality as a strategy for the Health Production of the elderly. The first category revealed that the elderly take care of their health by adopting a healthy diet, performing physical activities, medical consultations and exams, there was also a link between the elderly and the Family Health Strategy (FHS) and difficulties in accessing medical and multiprofessional specialties. In the second, it was identified that the participants have an expanded concept of sexuality, rarely receiving the offer of guidance, inputs and / or rapid tests. In the last category, it was evident that the elderly conceive the group as an important form of care and health production. It was concluded that the elderly FHS studied know the forms of minimum and essential health care and perceive their sexuality in a broader way, but do not feel that this aspect of their lives is the target of care by FHS professionals, however, they identified the Operative Group as a form of health care and production. The elderly are linked to the FHS, but are unable to properly access specialized services.