Literature review on the implications of decriminalization for the care of drug users in Portugal and Brazil

Mental Health Studies published in the last 25 years in the Journal Ciência & Saúde Coletiva

A systematic review of the 25-year Mental Health production of Journal Ciência & Saúde Coletiva was performed to identify whether this production had changed over time. We investigated whether these changes would have any relationship with the implementation of a new regulatory and legal framework for this field and the expansion of public services and the promotion of public funding agencies' investigation on the subject. A total of 278 original papers were analyzed from the following categories: sociocultural transformations related to madness and its approach; legislative changes; implantation, coverage range and operation of the network of substitute services; clinic/care developed in substitute services; the role and possibilities of primary care; drug use-related problems; mental health of children and adolescents; epidemiological studies/psychiatric categories; and others - which included ethnic-racial issues, violence, about the elderly population, suicide, bullying, and migration. A chronological relationship can be observed between the increase in publications and research notices and the expansion of services, not seemingly in the same way concerning care for people with alcohol and other drug problems.