Care group for mental health team: a professional development strategy

Abstract

The psychosocial care, the mental health care model applied in Brazil nowadays, has the following principles: democracy, social participation, involvement and shared responsibility, acceptance, listening and polyphonic interaction. This model connect mental health to citizenship and quality of life, aiming the psychosocial rehabilitation, the role and autonomy of users. In this model, the mental health professional is characterized as a caregiver, being the main instrument of his work, through direct and prolonged contact with users and staff. Thus, the mental health work engenders a particular kind of vulnerability, due to the constant emotional involvement with clients and other professionals, requiring affective resources, professional attitudes, skills and competencies that go beyond the limits of formal knowledge. Due to these aspects, several studies indicate the nature and organization of mental health work as generators of overload and stress for mental health professionals. This study aimed to identify the thematics that emerged in an intervention process carried out with two multidisciplinary teams of Psychosocial Care Center (CAPS) in a city in northern Parana, Brazil. Ten weekly meetings of "care groups for mental health staff" were carried out, with experiential activities followed by group discussion. The qualitative analysis of field diary allowed some themes identification such as: "Self-care: taking responsibility in reducing vulnerability," "From individualistic position to the collective project" and "Giving new meanings to teamwork". It was concluded that the intervention resulted in important reflections about daily professional issues that reflected in participants professional practices. It was highlighted that the care groups may constitute useful strategy for professional development in the mental health field.