CHALLENGES TO PSYCHOLOGIST WORKING IN PRIMARY CARE MATRIX SUPPORT TEAM

Introduction: In our country (Brazil), most of the universities, while teaching psychology, foccus on individual care approaches, and the students graduate knowing a lot about psycoanalyses, comportmental or Gestalt theory. paying attention to the settings, time of sessions and all about the private clinic environment. While working as matrix support for the primary care teams, the psychologist has to deal with a lot of new principles and tools. The matrix support team (NASF in Portuguese) was built by the Ministery of Health of Brazil as a group of interdisciplinary professionals that work together with the PC to help them increase their solvability, quality, the range of problems that can be taking care of and as a permanent education to the staff. Probably, no psychologist student graduates having tools to succeed in such a task. Method: Build and work with new tools and devices can increase the quality of our work and the care offered to the patients.We use interconsultation, home visits, case conferences and worksharing. Elaborate individual and community therapeutic projects with the PC and the users increasing the possibility of team work. The creation of group activities tend to maximize the bennefits of the care and help building social support so needed nowadays. Results: The matrix support team helps to increase quality in primary care and to deal with a larger range of problems, therefore minimizing patients suffering.