Health and social care

Many families in the country or in those areas on the outskirts of cities are faced with problems relating to access to basic services: such as health, education, employment etc . The social work programmes undertaken by Essor and some NGOs in Brazil and Mozambique are designed primarily to inform the population about the services that are available. Support is then offered depending on the “priority” needs of each family. Specific action can then be taken.

Social work staff receive families with difficulties and provide areas where these families can be listened to and where they can talk so that their problems can be identified and any action aimed at resolving these problems can be planned. One simple problem may be resolved after one or two consultations (the obtaining of government documents, enrolment in training courses). The work by these staff is conducted within community centres managed by associations which act as intermediaries between the staff and the government bodies.

Any assistance provided is adapted to meet the needs of the individual but families presenting similar problems are invited to take part in thematic workshops that allow them each to talk to one another about their problems and to gain a better understanding of matt rs (examples : pregnant women, cancer prevention, family planning). Some families can also benefit from individual support provided at home. District family support staff are trained to do this job.

At the same time, various programmes have been set up to assist these families, especially in relation to preventive health care :

-Stimulating child development and preventing child nutrition
- AIDS prevention : preventative programmes in areas where prostitution takes place and in deprived communities are supported by trained community groups. Educational literature is also prepared and distributed.

In rural areas, groups consisting of about twenty women meet on a regular basis with a female expert to talk about their experiences and to go undergo some training in nutrition, illness prevention, family planning and how to make use of medicinal plants.