How the choice of ethnic indicator influences ethnicity-based inequities in maternal health care in four Latin American countries: who is indigenous?

BACKGROUND: The current focus on monitoring health inequalities and the complexity around ethnicity requires careful consideration of how ethnic disparities are measured and presented. This paper aims to determine how inequalities in maternal healthcare by ethnicity change according to different criteria used to classify indigenous populations. METHODS: Nationally representative demographic surveys from Bolivia, Guatemala, Mexico, and Peru (2008-2016) were used to explore coverage gaps across maternal health care by ethnicity using different criteria. Women were classified as indigenous through self-identification (SI), spoken indigenous language (SIL), or indigenous household (IH). We compared the gaps through measuring coverage ratios (CR) with adjusted Poisson regression models. RESULTS: Proportions of indigenous women changed significantly according to the identification criterion (Bolivia:SI-63.1%/SIL-37.7%; Guatemala:SI-49.7%/SIL-28.2%; Peru:SI-34%/SIL-6.3% & Mexico:SI-29.7%/SIL-6.9%). Indigenous in all countries, regardless of their identification, had less coverage. Gaps in care between indigenous and non-indigenous populations changed, for all indicators and countries, depending on the criterion used (e.g., Bolivia CR for contraceptive-use SI = 0.70, SIL = 0.89; Guatemala CR for skilled-birth-attendant SI = 0.77, SIL = 0.59). The heterogeneity persists when the reference groups are modified and compare just to non-indigenous (e.g., Bolivia CR for contraceptive-use under SI = 0.64, SIL = 0.70; Guatemala CR for Skilled-birth-attendant under SI = 0.77, SIL = 0.57). CONCLUSIONS: The indigenous identification criteria could have an impact on the measurement of inequalities in the coverage of maternal health care. Given the complexity and diversity observed, it is not possible to provide a definitive direction on the best way to define indigenous populations to measure inequalities. In practice, the categorization will depend on the information available. Our results call for greater care in the analysis of ethnicity-based inequalities. A greater understanding on how the indigenous are classified when assessing inequalities by ethnicity can help stakeholders to deliver interventions responsive to the needs of these groups.

[Reducing the inequalities experienced by an indigenous community in Brazil: The social role of the university]. / Réduire les inégalités subies par une communauté amérindienne au Brésil : le rôle social de l'université.

The objective of this article is to describe and analyse the actions developed by a health promotion programme between 2013 and 2014 in an indigenous Kiriri community in Bahia, Brazil. One of the specificities of the programme was that it was conducted in the context of the extension activities of Brazilian universities. This programme illustrates the actions of extension, a longstanding social function of Brazilian universities and the value of involving the university in community health actions.Based on the action research methodology, the project was designed to stimulate reflection on the broader concept of health and its social determinants, developing the link between the various languages and cultures based on social mobilization around health promotion and to promote respect for cultural diversity. The programme's actions allowed production of knowledge concerning the living conditions of the indigenous community and a dialogue between scientific knowledge and popular knowledge, appropriation of existing public policies by the population, and also a change in the population's perception of health, extending beyond the biomedical view and taking living conditions into account as determinants of health.

[Facilitators and barriers to implementation of intercultural health policy in Chile]. / Facilitadores y obstaculizadores de la implementación de la política de salud intercultural en Chile.

Objective To identify elements that either facilitate or hinder implementation of Chile's intercultural health policy. Methods A descriptive study was conducted with the participation of health services users from the Mapuche ethnic group, biomedical health professionals, intercultural facilitators, and key informants in two health facilities serving towns with a high density of Mapuche population. The information was obtained through semi-structured interviews that were analyzed thematically. Results Factors identified as facilitating the implementation of this policy include laws and regulations pertaining to the rights of indigenous peoples, the empowerment of users around their rights, the formation of implementation teams, the presence of professionals of Mapuche origin in health facilities, and the existence of processes for systematization of the work carried out. The asymmetric relationship between the Mapuche people and the state, and between the Mapuche health system and the biomedical model, constitutes a fundamental barrier. Other obstacles include the lack of theoretical and practical clarity around the concept of intercultural health and a lack of resources. Conclusions Despite the facilitators identified and the achievements to date, meaningful progress in implementation of an intercultural health policy is limited by barriers that are hard to change. These include the usual forms of government planning and the hegemony of the biomedical model.

Challenges to participation in action research.

In order to understand and take action in complex health and environmental issues, we intend to analyse the conditions that are needed for those at risk to participate in research and intervention projects. In this study, we describe and discuss an action research experience carried out with an indigenous community in the Brazilian Amazon that suffers from serious sanitary problems, where cultural aspects in the relationship with the environment and health are particularly relevant. Different types of tools were deployed and combined and were subsequently classified according to their dialectic efficacy and ability to both conduct and steer the research and encourage the participation of social actors within a process of feedback. Even tools that were considered to be non-dialectic proved to be important sources of feedback. We present a research flow as a model of analysis and a framework for implementing action research, in which challenges to the participation of social actors are classified according to their priority through a critical review of the methodology developed. These challenges are social mobilization, co-operation, appropriation and a proactive stance. We conclude that a cyclic combination of dialectic and non-dialectic tools can increase participation, which though difficult to achieve is nevertheless necessary. During the development of this process, social mobilization is a prerequisite, whereas a proactive stance, the highest level of participation, requires continuous effort and the successive deployment of a variety of tools.

Public health programs as surrogates for social action in Suriname, South America.

This paper addresses the merits of public health activism that advocates for social change in which health is the outcome of interest. We acknowledge that while efforts at the individual level are important, social network models consider the underlying mechanisms that lie outside the public health sector. This paper considers the inequitable health of Indigenous people who bear a disproportionate share of the negative health consequences due to economic development programs that follow an assimilation model. This paper discusses a combination of theoretical constructs to understand and solve the problems at hand. It concludes that while the attention paid to technological and behavioral solutions at the individual level yields important health outcomes, attention should also be paid to structural causes that address social, political and economic barriers to prevent disease, disability and premature death.

[Cultural singularities: indigenous elderly access to Public Health Service]. / Singularidades culturais: o acesso do idoso indígena aos serviços públicos de saúde.

OBJECTIVE: Describing how Kaingang seniors and their primary caregivers experience access to public health services. METHOD: A qualitative study guided by ethnography, conducted with 28 elderly and 19 caregivers. Data were collected between November 2010 and February 2013 through interviews and participative observation analyzed by ethnography. RESULTS: The study revealed the benefits and difficulties of the elderly access to health services, the facility to obtain health care resources such as appointments, medications and routine procedures, and the difficulties such as special assistance service problems and delays in the dispatching process between reference services. CONCLUSION: The importance of knowing and understanding the cultural specificities of the group in order to offer greater opportunities for the elderly access to health services was reinforced.

[Professional education and work of indigenous health agents in the Brazilian health system]. / La formación y el trabajo del agente indígena de salud en el Subsistema de Salud Indígena en Brasil.

OBJECTIVE: To discuss the role of indigenous health agents in the implementation of the model of differentiated attention or intercultural health in Brazil. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We revised the scientific literature about the work and professional education of indigenous health agents in the Brazilian indigenous health system. RESULTS: There is a subordination of the agents to the hegemonic medical model. With regards to professional education, we observe the absence and irregularity of these processes, with a general emphasis the biomedicine. There are conflicts with the health team and community, with devaluation of the agents. The agent does not plays the role of mediator between the different health knowledge and practices. CONCLUSIONS: We suggest that the discussion of the model of differentiated attention should strengthen the relationship between the health system and the selfcare.

[Organization of healthcare and assistance to the elderly indigenous population: synergies and particularities of the professional context]. / Organização do serviço de saúde e cuidado ao idoso indígena: sinergias e singularidades do contexto profissional.

This study aimed to describe the effects of the organization of primary healthcare on the assistance provided to the elderly Kaingang population, according to the perception of health professionals that work in this area. It is a qualitative and descriptive study, supported by ethnography methodological references, and was conducted with ten healthcare professionals that work in Faxinal, an indigenous territory in the state of Paraná, in Brazil. Data was collected from November 2010 to February 2012 through participant observation and interviews. The results revealed that health professionals strive to meet the health needs of the elderly Kaingang people; however, there are negative effects that hinder the professional care, especially limited human resources, lack of training and material resources, heavy workload and high turnover rates. This study highlights the need to improve work conditions in order to provide better healthcare.

Analysis of the completeness and consistency of records of violence against indigenous women in the health macro-region of Dourados, Mato Grosso do Sul state, Brazil, 2009-2020.

OBJECTIVE: To analyze the temporal trend of completeness and consistency of data on notifications of violence against indigenous women in the health macro-region of Dourados, state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil, between 2009 and 2020. METHODS: An ecological time series study was conducted using data from the Notifiable Health Conditions Information System; Prais-Winsten regression was used to analyze the trend of data completeness and consistency, as well as the proportion of completed and coherent fields. RESULTS: A total of 2,630 cases were reported; completeness was found to be very poor in the variable "occupation" (48.9%) and poor in the variables "schooling" (68.3%) and "time of occurrence" (67.9%); in the analysis of temporal trends, only the variable "occupation" showed a decreasing trend (p = 0.045). CONCLUSION: The data analyzed demonstrated the need for improvement in the completeness of the variables "schooling", "occupation" and "time of occurrence" of the violent act. MAIN RESULTS: There was a progressive increase in notifications over the years. Most of the variables showed regular or excellent completeness and consistency. In the analysis of temporal trend, only the "occupation" variable showed a decreasing trend. IMPLICATIONS FOR SERVICES: Care for victims of violence is part of the daily routine of health services, and it is essential for health professionals to provide adequate compulsory notification for a comprehensive understanding of the victims' profile, thus assisting in addressing this issue. PERSPECTIVES: Further studies are needed to understand the factors associated with violence against indigenous women, which could help the development of health promotion actions and violence prevention strategies targeting these women.

[Problem-solving in the Indigenous Health Care Subsystem (SASI-SUS): analysis in a reference service in Amazonas, Brazil]. / Resolutividade no Subsistema de Atenção à Saúde Indígena (SASI-SUS): análise em um serviço de referência no Amazonas, Brasil.

Problem-solving is one of the principles of the Unified Health System (SUS) in Brazil, with its ability to solve the health problems of the population at different levels of complexity. The Indigenous Health Care Subsystem (SASI-SUS) is part of this service, respecting the specificities of indigenous populations. The scope of this article is to analyze the perception of professionals and managers of an Indigenous Health Center (CASAI) regarding its ability to cope with the circumstances of the pandemic. It involved qualitative and descriptive research under the National Health Care Policy for Indigenous Peoples (PNASPI) and Paul Ricoeur's hermeneutic theory. Interviews were conducted with participants in order to record the experiences in the work process of the actors who assist the indigenous people housed at CASAI. Four essential themes were identified in the interviews: cultural care; permanent education in health & health education; negotiation & improvisation; and reception & infrastructure. CASAI is an institution that is more than a support center or accommodation, being a crossover point between the different levels of care and knowledge production of the indigenous people, as well as a place for establishing a relationship, resulting in a problem-solving space.

A resolutividade é um dos princípios do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS) no Brasil, com sua capacidade de resolver os problemas da população nos diferentes níveis de complexidade da saúde. O Subsistema de Atenção à Saúde Indígena (SASI-SUS) integra este sistema, respeitando as especificidades das populações indígenas. O objetivo deste artigo é analisar a percepção dos profissionais e gestores de uma Casa de Saúde Indígena (CASAI) a respeito da resolutividade no subsistema quanto às circunstâncias da pandemia. Pesquisa qualitativa, de caráter descritivo, à luz da Política Nacional de Atenção à Saúde dos Povos Indígenas (PNASPI) e da teoria hermenêutica de Paul Ricoeur. Foram realizadas entrevistas entre os participantes a fim de registrar as experiências no processo de trabalho dos atores que cuidam dos indígenas referenciados à Manaus, Amazonas. Foram identificadas, pelas entrevistas, quatro temáticas essenciais: cuidado cultural; educação permanente em saúde & educação em saúde; negociação & improviso e; acolhimento & infraestrutura. A CASAI é uma instituição que vai além de um centro de apoio ou alojamento, sendo ponto de articulação entre os diferentes níveis de atenção aos indígenas e local de produção de cuidados e de saberes, tal como da construção de suas relações, resultando em um espaço resolutivo.

Consumption of ayahuasca by children and pregnant women: medical controversies and religious perspectives.

In 2010, the Brazilian Government agency responsible for drug-related issues formulated official Resolutions that categorized the consumption of ayahuasca by pregnant women and children in the Santo Daime and União do Vegetal ayahuasca-based religions as an "exercise of parental rights." Although ayahuasca groups do enjoy a relative degree of social legitimacy and formal legal recognition in Brazil, the participation of pregnant women and children nevertheless continues to provoke heated discussion. This article raises the main issues involved in the public debate over this subject. In the first part, a diverse group of biomedical and health specialists was consulted, and their opinions were briefly analyzed. In the second, a full interview with a follower of one branch of Santo Daime, mother of four children who took ayahuasca during all her pregnancies, and whose children all drink ayahuasca, is presented. Her interview reveals important cultural parameters of ayahuasca consumption. The article explores common themes and contradictions found between the biomedical, anthropological, and ayahuasca-users' discourses. It raises central issues regarding the limits of freedom of religion and the state's right to interfere in family matters. The following analysis also has implications regarding the role of science in influencing policy decisions on drug use.

[The interiorization of covid-19 in the Amazon region: reflections on the past and present of public health]. / A interiorização da covid-19 na Amazônia: reflexões sobre o passado e o presente da saúde pública.

This text uses theoretical contributions from the history of science to discuss aspects of the stages of pandemics understood as social phenomena and how covid-19 moved into the interior of the Amazon region. The arrival of this disease in the vast forest territory made differentiated access to public health more evident, with services and professionals concentrated in the larger cities in the north of Brazil. The rise in coronavirus rates within the forest consequently highlights the history of social inequalities in the region and problems accessing citizenship in Brazilian society.

A partir de contribuições teóricas do campo da história das ciências, o presente texto debate aspectos das etapas das pandemias entendidas como fenômeno social e como tem ocorrido o processo de interiorização da covid-19 na Amazônia. A chegada da doença aos vastos territórios da floresta tem deixado mais evidente o processo de acesso diferenciado à saúde pública, com concentração de serviços e profissionais nas maiores cidades da região Norte. O crescimento dos índices do coronavírus na floresta evidencia, portanto, as desigualdades sociais históricas da região e os problemas no acesso à cidadania na sociedade brasileira.

The active search for respiratory symptomatics for the control of tuberculosis in the Potiguara Indigenous Scenario, Paraiba, Brazil.

This study sought to analyze the actions of an active search for respiratory symptomatics (RSs) in the control of tuberculosis (TB) in the Potiguara Special Indigenous Sanitary District, Paraiba, Brazil, between May and June 2007. After approval by the Research Ethics Committee, 23 professionals were grouped, including physicians, nurses, nurse technicians and indigenous health agents. The focus group technique was used as an instrument for data collection, based on the discourse analysis technique. Weaknesses of an operational nature that became apparent, related to the organization of local health service for the implementation of routines for diagnosing TB: absence of a systematic routine for searching for RSs, difficulties in organizing the material for bacteriological examination, inadequate approach to patient during sputum collection and inadequate professional training. It is deemed necessary to improve the organization of services for early detection of TB cases in the local indigenous scenario.

Cooperatives for "fair globalization"? Indigenous people, cooperatives, and corporate social responsibility in the Brazilian Amazon.

Cooperatives and socially responsible corporations are being hailed as possible correctives to the socioeconomic and ecological exploitation of transnational capitalism. AmazonCoop­a cooperative linking indigenous Brazil nut harvesters and the multinational firm The Body Shop through trade and development projects­capitalized on indigenous symbolism to generate significant material benefits for both parties. At the same time, however, it made indigenous people more vulnerable and dependent, failed to promote participatory development, masked the effects of unfavorable state policies, and perpetuated discriminatory distinctions among indigenous people. Furthermore, the cooperative did not provide an organizational framework to ameliorate the vulnerabilities of indigenous identity politics or transform symbolic capital into enduring political-economic change. This case strongly supports arguments that cooperatives must be rooted in participation, democratic member control, and autonomy if they are to promote "fair globalization" or social transformation rather than institutionalize existing patterns of exploitation.

[Hitupmã'ax: intercultural education and specific health care for the Maxakali people]. / Hitupmã'ax: educação intercultural e atendimento diferenciado à saúde do povo maxakali.

This study analyzed an artifact (a book on health) conceived by the Maxakali people, called Hitupmã'ax: curar (2008). Parallel to the project for the production of this book, the aim was to understand the negotiation of public health in Brazil from a historical and intercultural perspective of non-Western epistemologies. It was found that the construction of the Maxakali work represented an effort to bridge the gap in the perception of health and health care between indigenous and non-indigenous people. This was then used to demonstrate the importance of this intercultural project for the shaping of public policies for indigenous people in general and particularly for the promotion of the history, knowledge, and culture of the Maxakali people.

Este trabalho analisou um artefato (um livro de saúde) concebido pelo povo maxakali, denominado Hitupmã'ax: curar (2008). Tangenciado o projeto de produção do livro, o objetivo foi entender o processo de negociação da saúde pública no Brasil, dentro de uma perspectiva histórica e intercultural das epistemologias não ocidentais. Constatamos que a construção da obra maxakali representa um esforço para diminuir a distância da percepção e dos cuidados de saúde entre indígenas e não indígenas, e por essa via demonstramos a importância desse projeto intercultural para a efetivação de políticas públicas voltadas para o público indígena em geral e, especificamenete, para a promoção da história, dos saberes e da cultura maxakali.

Covid-19 pandemic and the motivations for demanding health service in indigenous villages.

OBJECTIVE: To discuss the fundamental aspects in the establishment of preventive measures to tackle covid-19 among indigenous people in view of the motivations for seeking health care in villages of the Terra Indígena Buriti, Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. METHODS: Theoretical-reflective study based on assumptions of the National Health System and previous ethnographic research that enabled the identification of the motivations to seek health care in Buriti villages. RESULTS: Indigenous people seek health centers for health care programs assistance, treatment of cases they cannot resolve and to chat. Such motivations were the basis for discussing the indigenization process in the confrontation of the new coronavirus pandemic in indigenous lands. FINAL CONSIDERATIONS: The motivations for seeking health care show the physical and social vulnerability of the Terena ethnicity. The effectiveness of the social isolation measure in the villages depends on the dialogue with indigenous leaders, professional engagement and intersectoral actions.

The 2009 pandemic H1N1 influenza and indigenous populations of the Americas and the Pacific.

There are few structured data available to assess the risks associated with pandemic influenza A(H1N1)v infection according to ethnic groups. In countries of the Americas and the Pacific where these data are available, the attack rates are higher in indigenous populations, who also appear to be at approximately three to six-fold higher risk of developing severe disease and of dying. These observations may be associated with documented risk factors for severe disease and death associated with pandemic H1N1 influenza infection (especially the generally higher prevalence of diabetes, obesity, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and pregnancy in indigenous populations). More speculative factors include those associated with the risk of infection (e.g. family size, crowding and poverty), differences in access to health services and, perhaps, genetic factors. Whatever the causes, this increased vulnerability of indigenous populations justify specific immediate actions in the control of the current pandemic including primary prevention (intensified hygiene promotion, chemoprophylaxis and vaccination) and secondary prevention (improved access to services and early treatment following symptoms onset) of severe pandemic H1N1 influenza infection.