Therapeutic itineraries of Congolese refugees in the city of São Paulo

ABSTRACT

São Paulo, the most populous Brazilian city, has been the main destination for refugees and it is home to the majority of Congolese, who are the second largest nationality to request refuge in Brazil. In the context of these migrations, previous experiences in displacement and in places of welcome can trigger illness and suffering. The purpose of this article was to analyse the therapeutic itineraries of refugees from the Democratic Republic of Congo who reside in the city of São Paulo. The research followed an ethnographic approach and included focus group, ethnographic observation and in-depth interviews with 15 Congolese men in refuge in São Paulo between 2015 and 2016. The difficulties faced in the dignified reconstruction of lives include housing, precarious work and racism. Different systems are actuated in healthcare, treatment in health centres and hospitals regarding acute and chronic physical problems, in addition to self-care, identified in the preparation of teas for gastrointestinal ailments. When confronted by suffering, religious social networks, and those of friends and family are activated, in addition to alcohol consumption. The family is sought when facing financial and, principally, emotional problems. The itineraries include multiple therapeutic systems and a dialectic relationship with free, universal services perceived as inequitable.

KEYWORDS:

• Refugees
• therapeutic itineraries
• Democratic Republic of Congo
• qualitative research
• Brazil

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Congolese refugees for their participation in this study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors .

ORCID

Silvia Viodres Inoue http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7823-1923

Cássio Silveira http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7165-1730

Denise Martin http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6894-2702

Notes

1 http://sisconare.mj.gov.br/.

2 The idea of resettlement in solidarity has been translated into practice in Brazil, Chile, Argentina and Uruguay in 2004, leading to the emergence of a new approach to a traditional durable solution (Jubilut & Carneiro, 2011).

3 Despite having lived in other countries, Hypolitis requested refugee status in Brazil.

Additional information

Funding

Marcelo Haydu was supported through a PhD fellowship (2014–2017) from the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES).