Hope and trust in times of Zika: the views of caregivers and healthcare workers at the forefront of the epidemic in Brazil
Hope and trust in times of Zika: the views of caregivers and healthcare workers at the forefront of the epidemic in Brazil
Data
2020
Autores
Simas, Clarissa
Penn-Kekana, Loveday
Kuper, Hannah
Lyra, Tereza Maciel
Moreira, Maria Elisabeth Lopes
Albuquerque, Maria do Socorro Veloso de
Araújo, Thália Velho Barreto de
Melo, Ana Paula Lopes de
Mendes, Corina Helena Figueira
Moreira, Martha Cristina Nunes
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Health Policy and Planning
Resumo
This article investigates how hope and trust played out for two groups at the forefront of the Zika epi-
demic: caregivers of children with congenital Zika syndrome and healthcare workers. We conducted
76 in-depth interviews with members of both groups to examine hope and trust in clinical settings, as
well as trust in public institutions, in the health system and in the government of Brazil. During and
after the Zika epidemic, hope and trust were important to manage uncertainty and risk, given the lack
of scientific evidence about the neurological consequences of Zika virus infection. The capacity of
healthcare workers and caregivers to trust and to co-create hope seems to have allowed relationships
to develop that cushioned social impacts, reinforced adherence to therapeutics and enabled informa-
tion flow. Hope facilitated parents to trust healthcare workers and interventions. Hope and trust
appeared to be central in the establishment of support networks for caregivers. At the same time,
mistrust in the government and state institutions may have allowed rumours and alternative explana-
tions about Zika to spread. It may also have strengthened activism in mother’s associations, which
seemed to have both positive and negative implications for healthcare service delivery. The findings
also point to distrust in international health actors and global health agenda, which can impact com-
munity engagement in future outbreak responses in Brazil and other countries in Latin America.
Description
Palavras-chave
Hope, trust, Zika virus, microcephaly, congenital Zika syndrome, caregivers, healthcare workers
Citação
Simas C, Penn-Kekana L, Kuper H, Lyra TM, Moreira MEL, de Albuquerque MDSV, de Araújo TVB, de Melo APL, Figueira Mendes CH, Nunes Moreira MC, Ferreira do Nascimento MA, Pimentel C, Pinto M, Valongueiro S, Larson H. Hope and trust in times of Zika: the views of caregivers and healthcare workers at the forefront of the epidemic in Brazil. Health Policy Plan. 2020 Oct 1;35(8):953-961. doi: 10.1093/heapol/czaa042.