Violence against children and adolescents: multidisciplinary PHC interventions in schools

Abstract

This excerpt of a master’s thesis aims to describe the construction of proposals for the prevention, combat, and attention to intrafamily and school violence against child and adolescent students in a suburban district of a municipality in the inland region of Bahia, Brazil. A qualitative, descriptive, exploratory study was conducted through action research. The social stakeholders of the research were the school community, the family, and health professionals. Data were collected by systematic observation, conversation circles, and seminars adopted for situational diagnosis and the development of interventions. Data was interpreted through content analysis. The activities revealed the relevance of the work developed in intersectoral and multidisciplinary qualified network, resulting in behavioral changes of adolescents at school and in the family, their leadership in educational workshops for a peace culture, the implementation of a conflict mediation space at school, the establishment of a physical activity project, drawing parents closer to the school, and raising the awareness toward better possibilities of non-violent domestic education. We conclude that the interventions initiated a movement of change of practices and dialogue of the several district services, resulting in a gradual construction of peace territories in the school and the community.