Public health and occupational therapy: appointments on current and historical relations

Abstract

It is affirmed that Brazilian Public Health policies have rooting and influence in the social-historical development of Occupational Therapy profession. So, this study starts from the historical-political course of these two fields and their establishing as institutions, in a route from philanthropy to social rights, acheived due to brazilian democratization movement, which took place in the end of 1980's and enlarged social rights for everyone. One of its results was the implementation of Sistema Único de Saúde (Health Public System), which provides universal care, including groups that were, up to that time, attended mainly by philanthropic services. This need has created a lack of professionals which were, in that period, scarce in the public health system, as Occupational Therapists. From that time on, technicians have created new services, and care and attention technologies which have made possible the yet precarious insertion of some groups into the access to the health system and, consequently, the development of that profession. So, it is pointed that through the establishing of public policies which expand the access to social rights of the groups targeted by Occupational Therapy, it is possible, as a consequence, to enlarge professional intervention fields and professional development. Finally, the current difficulties around the political-economical model and the permanent challenge of enlarging attention and inclusion of groups into social rights access are pointed out.