This study, brings to society, healthcare and education professionals, graduate students and experts an awareness of the importance of public services and that of the Family Health Support Program of the Federal Government assisting the Public Health Municipal Departments of the State of Rio de Janeiro in order to improve the service-dependent impoverished population. This study is part of a collection of articles of professional practice for the promotion of physical, mental, social, and relational health of enrollees at the Unified Health System (SUS) related to physical education care such as psychomotor therapy, stimulation of physical activity by the elderly, patients with congenital and acquired deficiencies, teenagers and those sedentary assisting in the rehabilitation of their motor skills and quality of living for patients dependent upon public services with the Units of Family Health in vulnerable and socially endangered areas of São Gonçalo – thus explaining theoretical concepts as associated to professional practices in the public service. 

The method employed to attend to the human development of the elderly and subjects in general stimulates their physical, motor, social, affective, and emotional traits and is intertwined within the work and study methodology based upon the Relational Psychomotricity Science pioneered in the seventies by French Physical Educator André Lapierre. We developed a study relied upon the Affect: Affecting And Being Affected. 

Affect is one of the basic aspects along with the cognitive-intelectual and the motor function of the subject and is based on psychomotricity science which means: Psycho – Mind / Motricity – It is the faculty of performing movements, or in other words, Psychomotricity is the science that studies mankind and their faculties – organic acquisitions such as cognition – intelect, their movement – the psychomotor elements and the social/relational – affective, assisting in the prevention, re-education, therapeutics. The aim is to contribute to the biopsychosocial development of the human being. 

In considering Psychomotricity, it is a science that fundamentally stimulates two concepts: that of a body chart and body imagery. We know that affect determines the way that children, teenagers, and adults see the world and how they manifest themselves within it. Affect is valuable in the practice of healthcare, education, and teaching. The professional needs a great level of tact to deal with uncountable challenging situations arising frequently within the daily realms of healthcare and education. Through this study, we affirm that the effective means of a more humane and coherent care is through affect. Those who feel embraced and encouraged by the professional, develop themselves in an emotional, relational, and motor aspect but mainly in an intelectual one.

During care of the elderly, we mainly stimulate social relations since it mostly takes place where patients live and in areas of permanent danger and social vulnerability – where they adapt themselves to, according to Piaget (1974), and learn other ways to engage in relationships amongst other forms of body awareness. And as noted by Vygotski (1994), each student is an active agent in this process by having consideration of the subject and through encouragement by the instructor in conducting the individual to be aware within the social environment as to being able to deconstruct negative views of self, of his or her present, and of the future – thus restoring self-esteem by showing there are other ways and that no one is bound to failure regardless of being brought up in an unstructured household with serious affect, social, and financial issues. 

Therapy, education, and psychomotor re-education, along with professional teaching, have to foster critical-thinking, conscious, and thoughtful citizens able to envision a reality above and beyond that which is shown by the media. Affect means that it is possible to bridge the gap between theory and practice with less barriers. This methodology proposes to amplify the providers’ areas of attention and points to the needs that must be perceived in the patients in general. This way, more than theoretical scientific knowledge is necessary to care for and to be opened to the world of the other (empathy) – which is part of building a solid foundation, where not only the content is taught or discussed, but also values, cooperation, compassion, and empathy. Instilling good values in our patients so they have a better future and mental health must be the goal of Public Health at the city level so that a true promotion of health takes place for the enrollees. 

We shall describe practical concepts and theory with professional experience towards a public service of quality and fair-to-all healthcare and education. I develop this healthcare study in poor communities that are devoid of many aspects, mostly affect. In a few years as a professional, I observed that the availability of the provider for others is the key to success towards effective and humane care. Throughout both my theoretical and practical career, I became aware that within the public service realm, patients need a differentiated approach by the providers and, in order for them to employ such an approach, they must reflect upon the following questions: what is my duty within society? What is my purpose in life? What do public service and being a public servant mean? In light of these questions, we, as providers, must reflect upon our routines and care for the public with more empathy, affection, and love – for they are in great need of quality public services. 

When answering the aforementioned questions, for the scrutiny of readers, I start by explaining the following – since when we comprehend what we do with the theory (group of rules) as well as our attitudes of daily practice (real application), the answer becomes evident, simple, and clear in regards to practice and theory. I understood that my role (duty) in society is to assist (cooperate) in such a way that my research and real practice makes the difference (change) in the life of the fellow man (of who is near) and, to break from (rupture) the system of reproducing framed concepts (copied and imitated thoughts and attitudes). 

In understanding it, my purpose in life (knowing what is done and why) has been to pass on my knowledge in a humane manner (with sociality), affableness (with etiquette, being approachable, affect), hospitality (with caring expressing gentleness) and with empathy (action of putting self in the context of another) towards those dependent on the public service (the effect of service). I had the understanding that being a public servant (he who servers others, the people) and that of acting in the public service means: to serve the public (people) and not to serve self through them, thus arriving to the conclusion that “The study, the knowledge, the understanding only make sense when we practice them.” 

In my experience as a physical educator working with the elderly, those with congenital and acquired disabilities, children, those diagnosed with depression, hypertension, stroke, joint issues, and other comorbidities, I seek to stimulate the areas of affect by fostering cooperation, physical touching, and the interaction through group activities. During classes, I work the cognitive by stimulating patients to concentrate, remember the exercises, the objects used, the names of their peers, and, lastly, the physical aspects through functional training by stimulating the following psychomotor elements: visual-lower limb awareness, manual dexterity, laterality, balancing, stretching, motor coordination, and resistance training for articular and muscular strengthening along with walking and conversations about the daily living of patients. 

According to, Maior and Alves (2003), when the individual at the beginning of the exercise presents coordination difficulties, it is because the individual's brain is not prepared for movement. That is, the brain does not recognize the proposed exercise and the movement is not well coordinated motorly. When the individual succeeds in movement and exercise, his brain is adapted to movement and can perform the movement well because of adaptation. We conclude that it is important to participate patients in psychomotor therapy to promote their quality of life and health in their integrality. Thus, health is the balanced condition of physical, emotional, spiritual and social well-being with the absence of diseases, disability and dysfunction. Therefore, "Health promotion is the art of helping people change their lifestyles to achieve full health" (Nahas and Totaro, 2010).

See below some pictures of psychomotricity therapy for social inclusion and interaction at the Family Health Units in the context of risk and social vulnerability within the slums of the city of São Gonçalo, state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: 

Depicted at the year 2020 a participation at the forefront of Brazil’s Public Health to confront the COVID-19/Corona virus within the context of orientation and specific care tailored to patients diagnosed in groups of risk who took part in the psychomotor therapy in the city of São Gonçalo.

 

References

 

Searched websites

Health Ministry: https://www.saude.gov.br/acoes-e-programas/saude-da-familia/nucleo-de-apoio-a-saude-da-familia-nasf

 

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Esp. Marcelo Bittencourt Jardim

marcelobjardim@gmail.com

Is a Graduate student at the Masters of Primary and Secondary Education Program at State University of Rio de Janeiro (UERJ); specialized in Psychomotricity Education and Clinicals by IBMR; and holds a Bachelor of Physical Education and Teaching by UNIPLI. Further studies in Community Health: Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS) by the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Public Education Teaching by CECIERJ. Further studies in Psychology: Expert in Persons by the CID, Orlando, FL, and Autism by the SMPD in Rio de Janeiro. Graduate Education: Professor at UDEMY, in São Paulo; has authored and written books published in Brazil and abroad (Chile, Argentina, Germany and United Kingdom) with several articles cited by the internationaly known Scopus and Web of Science. Mr. Jardim is also a member of the editorial and scientific committee for the ODEP journal from the Universidad De Los Lagos in Santiago, Chile, Physical Educator at the Health Department of the city of São Gonçalo within its Family Health Support Program, amongst teaching experience at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

 

Márcia Valadão dos Santos

cinhavaladao@yahoo.com.br

Is an undergraduate student of History Teaching at UNESA, at the Alcântara campus, RJ and a Public Health Agent with the Family Health Unit (PSF) in São Gonçalo, Brazil/RJ.