Discursos sobre sexualidade em um Centro de Testagem e Aconselhamento (CTA)

Counseling practices in Sexually Transmitted Infections/AIDS: the female health professionals' perspective

OBJECTIVE

to analyze the health professionals' perception about counseling in a Centro de Testagem e Aconselhamento em Infecções Sexualmente Transmissíveis (Center for Testing and Counseling in Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs) and AIDS) in Maceió, Alagoas.

METHOD

it is a qualitative research, with theoretical framework of the Discursive Practices and Production of Senses in the daily life carried out with the participation of 6 counselors. For research material production, the 'Conversation Round' technique and the semi-structured script were used. For material treatment the Discourse Analysis method was used, resulting in the production of analysis categories and Dialogic Maps.

RESULTS

in the current policies and actions of STI/AIDS, there is centralization in the procedures of anti-HIV testing and displacement of the professional counselor, undoing the testing and counseling.

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

the study indicates the need to overcome the instrumental and prescriptive models of counseling to produce a dialogical process of care and co-responsibility.

Challenges facing HIV treatment as prevention in Brazil: an analysis drawing on literature on testing

According to current global AIDS guidelines, HIV testing is key to the success of the 'treatment as prevention' (TasP) strategy and the control of AIDS. In view of Brazil's commitment to these guidelines, this article characterizes the principles and justifications underpinning TasP and discusses implementation challenges. The analysis draws on a systematic review of the literature (2005 to 2015) on recruitment and testing strategies for men who have sex with men. This approach was adopted based on the assumption that current knowledge on HIV testing can offer valuable insights into the foundations of global AIDS policies and their uptake in local contexts. Based on the analysis of the 65 articles selected, we suggest that TasP represents a shift in the AIDS prevention paradigm. There is an overlap between prevention and care and the new approach places major emphasis on biomedical and psychological knowledge. The TasP approach fails to address the factors associated with HIV vulnerability and the stigma surrounding AIDS and undermines the participation of activists and PLWHA as autonomous producers of preventive of preventive practices. We argue that, to ensure the effective implementation of TasP in Brazil, it is necessary to discuss issues such as the protection of human rights and the structural problems facing Brazil's public health system.

Institutional context and VCT practitioner narratives: possibilities and limitations for HIV prevention in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

BACKGROUND

Voluntary Counseling and Testing (VCT) is an HIV prevention strategy that promotes the principles of confidentiality and informed consent. International research has highlighted VCT counselors' isolation from service planning and the contradictions they negotiate between local values and global testing recommendations. In Brazil, studies have identified many limitations, including counselors' difficulties to implement a vulnerability approach to HIV prevention as recommended in the country's national guidelines. These studies, however, have not considered the particularities of the institutional contexts where counselors work. This research addresses these gaps in the VCT literature by exploring how VCT services are organized and how counselors perceive and perform their practices in the state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

METHODS

This is a case study of VCT services in the state of Rio de Janeiro. The research design included individual structured interviews with seven VCT service coordinators and twenty individual semi-structured interviews with VCT counselors. Participants were sampled according to gender, undergraduate degree and work trajectory to capture a diverse range counselor narratives.

RESULTS

The VCT services were relatively homogenous in terms of functioning and had a similar restricted roll of activities including individual counseling and occasional external prevention activities with groups vulnerable to HIV. All VCT services reported reductions in staff size. Some counselors used dialogical practices to build trust, guarantee confidentiality and adjust their practices in accordance with their clients' values and practices. Others emphasized imperative messages or focused on risk and individual responsibility. Connections between how counselors perceive their practices and the organization of their work environment were observed.

CONCLUSIONS

Due to the importance of counseling as a prevention strategy we recommend rethinking the relationship between counselors' practices and the organization of VCT services. The challenges brought about by the expansion of "test and treat" programs globally and other social and symbolic aspects of the HIV epidemic, such as gender inequalities, must also be taken into account. Further reflection is also needed on the relationship between counseling guidelines and practices within the vulnerability approach to HIV prevention.

Formação, práticas e trajetórias de aconselhadores de centros de testagem anti-HIV do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

Perante a importância do aconselhamento na testagem anti-HIV, analisamos as diretrizes institucionais, as competências privilegiadas no treinamento profissional e os saberes/práticas de aconselhadores. Trata-se de estudo qualitativo centrado na análise documental, observação e entrevista com aconselhadores de Centros de Testagem e Aconselhamento (CTA) do estado do Rio de Janeiro. A análise foi orientada pela teoria de Pierre Bourdieu. Foi evidenciado que o habitus profissional dos aconselhadores resulta da articulação dos treinamentos, da graduação e de experiências e interesses pessoais. A operacionalização de competências, como a escuta ativa, é limitada pela rotina dos serviços e escassez de espaços de reflexão. Para incrementar a prática do aconselhamento, é importante desenvolver competências no treinamento, manter a educação continuada e fazer adequações na rotina do serviço. Tais ajustes podem fortalecer a passagem das diretrizes à ação e o aprimoramento da organização e gestão dos CTA.