Therapeutic itineraries of family members in child and youth psychosocial care

Abstract

This is an exploratory descriptive study, with a qualitative approach, carried out in December 2017, in the Northern Region of the Distrito Federal, Brazil. It aimed to know the therapeutic itinerary of families and users of a Psychosocial Care Center for Children and Youth. Semi-structured and audio-recorded interviews were used and the data were subjected to thematic content analysis. Twelve family caregivers participated, mostly women. Two thematic categories and their subcategories were highlighted: The informal system of care: family, alternative resources and community network (The context of family care; Search for support in alternative resources of the folk system and community network), and The formal system of care: intersectoral actions (School as a support network for the promotion and development of children and adolescents and expanded health care; and Psychosocial Care Network and the intersectoral network). It was found in the informal system, a context of social vulnerability and resilience of family members, an initial tendency to seek spiritual support and challenges in the use of community resources for social inclusion. In the formal system, an arduous pilgrimage in services, fragmentation and intersectoral disarticulation and relevance of care at the Psychosocial Care Center. It points out the need for strengthening and articulating the informal and formal systems, as well as professional training actions and expansion of the service network, to expand the access and qualification of children's psychosocial care.