A contribuição do Terapeuta Ocupacional na abordagem de redução de danos

Abstract

In the field of mental health one of the actions to assist people that use substances is

the practice of Harm Reduction (HR), a health production strategy contrary to the anti- drug policy and the logic of abstinence. The occupational therapist is one of the

professionals who can compose the line of care in this field using the HR approach in interventions, promoting quality of life, restoring skills, producing autonomy and actions for social and family reintegration. This study consists in a literature review with a qualitative approach, carried out through selected findings by the search in electronic databases. We sought to discuss the importance of the HR approach in assisting substance users, as well as to analyze the contribution of the occupational therapist from this perspective and the possibilities of professional action with this public.The findings demonstrate that the use of the HR approach by the occupational therapist can help the users to find and experience possibilities of (re)constructing everyday life which may contribute to their recovery. The study concludes that substance users seek mental health services with different demands that are not restricted to abstinence and that the HR approach is potent when adopted as a strategy, but there are still challenges in a social and political bias for the use of this perspective. It appears that occupational therapists experience challenges in practice based on the HR approach requiring greater analysis of the performance and improvement on the subject.