O cuidado na atenção primária à saúde sob o olhar de uma comunidade cigana Calon em Sousa/PB

Abstract

The health services should guarantee equity of access so that all people and communities, regardless of ethnicity, culture, and socioeconomic status, can feel distanced from social vulnerabilities. In Brazil, public policies that present themselves as fundamental rights destined to communities and to traditional peoples are ignored or considered non-existent when sought, v.gr., in health practices. Among minority groups, the Roma population are marginalized in terms of their rights, especially those related to basic health care (from Primary Health Care – the first contact service for attention and health care for these people). In the Brazilian territory, there are Roma people of three ethnicities: the Rom, the Sinti and the Calons. The municipality of Sousa, in the hinterland of Paraíba, stands out for having the largest community of Roma people in Latin America with fixed residence. The present study aimed to understand the residents’ perception of the Roma community Calon de Pedro Maia about Primary Health Care, considering the access, the welcoming needs and bonding. It is about exploratory research, with a qualitative approach, designed in the Roma community Calon de Pedro Maia in Sousa/PB. Fifteen Calons participated in this research. The data was produced through interviews conducted between June and July 2023. After being transcribed, the interviews were organized and analyzed according to the Content Analysis Technique proposed by Bardin (2016). The results were organized into six thematic categories whose focus was to look after the health of the Roma population in the context of Primary Health Care. It was evident that to look after in the eyes of the Roma population is related to the collective treatment of the self and its relationship with nature, guaranteed through cultural tradition passed on between families, which is an important way of preserving the identity of these people. The results also point to the disrespect of the singularities of local Roma culture in health practices, including discrimination. It is noted that the lack of implementation of public policies related to environmental and structural issues, such as basic sanitation, housing, and education, are at the core of this population’s illness. The health care offered by the local Primary Care to the Roma people is still fragile, requiring reorganization to offer comprehensive, isonomic, respectful, and appropriate support for the singularities of this group.