Pharmaceutical assistance within the SUS: the experience of students in Rural Internship from a Pharmacy Course

Abstract

The 2002 Brazilian Curricular Lines established a new curriculum for Pharmacy Programs, including amplified information about the Unified Health System (SUS). Following this, some Colleges have implemented a Rural Internship (RI) discipline, as a way to promote: a) adequate information on the SUS, and b) students' interaction with pharmaceutical assistance. In this study we analyzed the perceptions of students enrolled in the Rural Internship program of the undergraduate Pharmacy Program at the Federal University of Minas Gerais. Eight students participated in this study and their perceptions and ideas were obtained by focus groups, both before and after the RI. This information was analyzed by content analysis. The students had a fragmented, distorted view on assistance, before as well as after taking the RI. Nevertheless, the RI provided students with a view of the professional realities and difficulties routinely faced by pharmacists in the public health system. The RI course of the Pharmacy Programs was viewed as an opportunity to improve the professional work within the SUS.