The Family Health Strategy (FHS) is based on teamwork and demands changes in the work process of the Health Care units, breaking the traditional model centralized on the physician's role. The present study aims to propose a theoretical model to assess power relations within the multidisciplinary team, grounded on Hannah Arendt's work. Based on an analysis of legal documents of the FHS and on Arendt's assumptions, a theoretical model for FHS evaluation was set up using a qualitative and hermeneutic-dialectic approach. In order to test the model, focus groups with health care teams and individual interviews were conducted in the municipality of Manacapuru - State of Amazonas (Northern Brazil). The results show that each professional performs his/her role in isolation, without sharing with others. The local management policy limits the collective work and does not use leadership principles; it is characterized as tyranny in Arendt's perspective, which brings discredit to the FHS.
Power; Family health; Patient care team; Focus group
