The practice of the family approach in the context of primary care: A comparative case study

Abstract

Objective: To describe the enterprise of the family approach, through interprofessional work, in the Family Health Strategy service in Brazil. Method: This is a comparative case study addressing a family perceived as being difficult to manage by the staff of a school health center. Household-based interviews were conducted with the instruments: Genograma, Ecomapa and Stages of the Family Life Cycle between March and April/2018, according to the Calgary Family Approach model. They were recorded in a field book, presented in a discursive way, including a survey of problems and the main interventions proposed to the family. Results: Recognition of the family context in its structure, development and functionality. It was evidenced weaknesses in family ties, conflicts between mother and daughter; relationships with social-community resources, with an emphasis on abusive alcohol consumption, the health situation of the key informant was presented as conditioning factors. The elaboration of the family therapeutic project considered the identification of possible solutions, adequate and accepted by the family. Conclusions: The presented case contributed potentially in how to guide the family approach, inferring in joint elaborations between multiprofessional team and the family. The proposition of intervention alternatives was conceived by a plural perspective of knowledge, surpassing a technicist rationality in health.