Acupuncture in Primary Health Care: traditional and medical-scientific approaches in everyday practice

Abstract

Acupuncture is the most used integrative and complementary practice in western countries and is widely incorporated into public health systems. Considering that Chinese medicine/acupuncture was absorbed by biomedical practice during the diaspora of this type of knowledge in the West, we question whether its autochthonous care characteristics remain present in its clinical application in primary health care. We investigated which care approach guides professionals with training in acupuncture (n = 21) working in primary care services in Campinas/SP, Brazil. All the interviewees trained in traditional methods of acupuncture adopted this approach, differentiating it from biomedicine. Acupuncture was considered effective in meeting the demands of comprehensive care and reducing the use of pharmaceuticals. However, the respondents reported significant structural difficulties in providing acupuncture in primary care services.