Professional practice in mental health in Psychosocial Care Centers during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Objective: to understand the professional practice of mental health care carried out in Psychosocial Care Centers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Method: qualitative descriptive-exploratory research was carried out in four Psychosocial Care Centers (CAPS) in the interior of Rio Grande do Sul, between August and November 2021, with the participation of 18 professionals who worked during the COVID-19 pandemic. The technique used for data collection was the semistructured interview, with visual representation through a word cloud. The data was analyzed using Thematic Analysis. Results: in the first category, "Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on professional practices in Psychosocial Care Centers", the main impacts were identified as changes in the CAPS routine and the need to adapt mental health care activities accordingly with the demands imposed by the pandemic. In the second category, "Mental health care practices during the COVID-19 pandemic", non-face-to-face mental health care practices were identified, using digital devices, in addition to face-to-face demands, to ensure the continuity of mental health care, with additional care to avoid contamination of CAPS professionals and users. Conclusion: during the COVID-19 pandemic, professional mental health care practices underwent changes due to the precautions adopted to avoid contamination by the virus. In this way, practices in CAPS were adapted with the use of technological devices, revealing difficulties both in the structure of services and in the social issues of users served in CAPS.