Los Grupos de Ayuda Mutua como posible estrategia de apoyo emocional para personas indígenas que padecen diabetes

Abstract

Objective. To think about the emotional support that Mutual Aid Groups (MAG) offer up to indigenous people with diabetes and their importance in adherence to treatment. Materials and methods. Qualitative study: 25 semistructured interviews; 3 focus groups (17 participants); and non-participant observation. Content analysis was carried out with the support of the Atlas-ti program. Results. We identified emotional expressions related to the disease. The opinion about MAGs and group work was positive. The MAG is a catharsis space, but it does not work as a support to face the restrictions of the treatment and the emotional impact in case of major complications. Conclusions. With proper training of the health personnel in charge of the groups, MAGs can become emotional support spaces for indigenous people and contribute to their well-being.