Prostitution and health: Social representations of nurses in the family health strategy

Abstract

Objective: to identify nurses' social representations about the relationship among prostitution, health and the Family Health Strategy. Method: qualitative study supported by the Theory of Social Representations, carried out with 12 nurses from the Family Health Strategy. Data collection used the Free Words Association technique and structured interviews. The data were organized using an association of the lexical content and the Collective Subject Discourse, presented in a figure and tables, analyzed in a descriptive and interpretative way. Results: the social representations of the nurses influence the actions and behaviors offered insofar as they are restricted to the sexual and reproductive sphere, to the detriment of the contextual aspects of everyday life, work and health. Conclusion: nurses' social representations link sexual practices to the risk of catching sexually transmitted infections and lacks the articulation of health promotion and the principle of integrality.