Views on mental health assistance in primary care at small cities: Emergence of innovative practices

Abstract

Mental health actions in primary care are a challenge within the scope of the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform. We aimed to understand the primary care practices provided for people with mental illness in small cities. This qualitative study used ethnomethodology and involved primary care managers and professionals from cities located in Vale do Jequitinhonha. The results enabled us to systematize primary care actions: To unveil the world of intramural mental disorders through home visits and presence at schools; to move between different universes, from traditional formats to mental health problems arising from the social media; to expand the approach to and support for mental health patients; and to perceive the transfer of stigmas operating in the mental health network. We conclude that primary care, which has the provision of humanized care as one of its principles, is part of the project of the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform and deepens it.