Abstract
Introduction:
despite the innumerable evidences that the current working conditions generate mental illness in workers, public policies that approach this subject are still fragile in Brazil.
Objectives:
to identify and analyze the praxis of public health professionals who understand the complexity of the work-related mental health-illness process.
Methods:
a qualitative study was carried out using the open interview technique with nine health professionals from Psychosocial Care Centers (Caps) and Occupational Health Reference Centers (Cerest) of the São Paulo State primary care network.
Results:
the professionals’ practices involve caring to workers who were already ill and proposals for psychic health promotion in the work environment. Their praxis revealed understanding of the relationship between mental health and work, and demonstrated their ethical and political commitment to the theme and to the Occupational Health field proposals.
Conclusion:
for the identified actions to be taken more frequently it is necessary to invest in health professionals’ argumentative trainings, to recognize the working class central role, and to consolidate and disseminate public policies aimed at preventing work-related mental illness.
Keywords:
mental health; work; praxis; Brazilian unified health system (SUS); health professionals