Paideia Education in primary care: an analysis of institutional democracy and power relations in health sector work practices

Abstract

This article looks at two pedagogical initiatives based on "Paideia Education" in order to analyze their contributions to the production of democratic relations and the co-production of care in primary health care. The first of these initiatives was a seminar on matrix support (2015-2016) that trained 94 specialists, and the second was a seminar on family care (2018-2020) that trained 149 professionals. The 243 participating health professionals came from five different municipalities in Brazil. The results obtained through questionnaires and field diaries kept during the seminars indicate that "Paideia Education" has the ability to motivate professionals to incorporate notions such as the expanded clinic and matrix support into primary health care, and fosters the sharing of care and the co-construction of autonomy with users. However, authoritarian management practices are still frequently directed towards professionals, practiced among professionals themselves, and directed towards patients, and therefore it is necessary to invest in a greater democratization of services beyond training.