Artigo científico
‘Leave it alone’: Therapeutic itinerary and access to health in rural communities of the Cerrado biome of Goiás
Autores
Reginaldo Teixeira Mendonça; GUSTAVO VINÍCIUS DOS SANTOS ESPÍNDULA; Pabline Gonçalves Ferreira da Silva
Dados bibliográficos
Ano: 2026
Local de publicação: Saúde em Debate
ISSN/ISBN: 0103-1104
Resumo
Therapeutic itineraries are adapted to the sociocultural context, revealing themselves as ways of caring for the body. In this sense, the objective was to describe the therapeutic itineraries of people living in two rural settlements and a quilombola community in the Cerrado region of Goiás. Data were obtained from the social actors’ accounts of the health-illness process, using a qualitative approach with participant observation, semi-structured interviews, and field diaries. The therapeutic itineraries of residents in rural Cerrado environments have a socio-historical trajectory marked by complex and often difficult pathways. They require experiences of seeking healthcare and the identification of possible routes. Thus, access and accessibility, knowledge, and acceptance are considered in relation to: a) the rural routes taken by their residents, whether in the twisted trees vegetation of the Cerrado in Goiás, or on winding roads, with poor or non-existent roads; b) experiences of suffering, illness, and bodily harms and their health as well as health practices that diverge between popular and scientific knowledge; and c) the resources used and the environment where they are obtained. The experiences of rural residents revealed ways of survival or care for the body and for the biodiversity of the Cerrado, demonstrating the difficulties, dangers, and harms, including those of social injustice and of a presumed urban progress.