MEDEIROS, D. Tabagismo e futuros profissionais da saúde: uma análise das representações sociais no Brasil e na Espanha [Smoking habits and future healthcare professionals: an analysis of social representation in Brazil and Spain]. Doctoral Thesis – USP. São Paulo (SP), 2014.
Available on: doi: <10.11606/T.6.2015.tde-05032015-125106>
Introduction: Currently, smoking is considered a worldwide public health problem, which extrapolates the physiological and psychological dimension. Therefore, smoking is understood as a social phenomenon to be explored by different areas of knowledge. The World Health Organization (WHO) considers that a change in the trend of global exposure towards smoking is needed, aiming and considering the healthcare professional as important key roles for anti smoking actions. According to WHO, these professionals are viewed as equally capable in meddling in the promotion of health education and in combating smoking altogether with society. Consequently, it is important to prioritize actions and studies engaging students of healthcare related areas, who will be working with people in the society in the near future. Therefore, it becomes important, to make their representations closer, beliefs and thinking from healthy/illness process into anti smoking programs. Objective: Analyze the social representations about smoking habits within students of healthcare areas, in Brazil and Spain. Methodology: This research was qualitative-quantitative study with 163 students in its final stages of the undergraduate health care program. Data were collected between August 2013 and May 2014, at private universities in Brazil and public universities in Spain, through triangulation methodology using the following instruments: Thematic Drawing-and-Story Procedure and Discourse of Collective Subject. Using the Social Representation Theory, categories were created through the results of each instrument and then, analyzed and discussed with studies within similar thematic. Results and discussion: The identification of social representations allowed recognizing an important change: smoking is no longer seen as a positive behavior – elegant and charming. Participants presented several critiques to smoking habits, especially when the smoking habits are related to healthcare professionals, who are viewed as models of healthy habits. Although there are differences in the cultural background of those two groups, there were not found any significant divergences in the representations of Brazilian and Spanish students. Final Considerations: The information resulting from this study allows us to contribute to the healthcare education programs planning, mainly to university students groups and healthcare areas students as well as assisting in antismoking and smoking cessation programs.