When research carried out in the academic field draws the attention of the public authorities, it is a significant sign that studies have gone beyond the walls of the University and can be useful in the construction of public policies aimed at the whole of society. In early June, the professor of the Medicine course at PUCRS and researcher at the Brain Institute of RS, Rodrigo Grassi-Oliveira, was invited to participate in a seminar at the Ministry of Citizenship, in Brasília. He addressed the study “Targets of protection for female users”, carried out since 2010 by the interdisciplinary group of Cognitive Development Neuroscience (DCNL), which is part of the University's School of Medicine.

The study showed data collected from 1344 users, 546 of whom were crack users. They had an HIV rate of 20%, a percentage considerably higher than the average for the general population, which is 0.8%. “The chain needs to take into account that the disease of chemical dependence is more serious in women because, according to the study, they consume more stones per day, suffer more in detoxification, are generally victims of sexual abuse and lack planning strategies and specific services, ”said Grassi.

Each of the women has two to three children, and those children who develop in this context of vulnerability are also a target of concern for researchers. “With children developing in this context, we estimate that they suffer abuse, such as neglect in early childhood. To prevent them from seeing the next users, it is necessary to focus on prevention ”, he emphasized.

At the end of the panel, the Secretary of Care and Drug Prevention of the Ministry of Citizenship, Quirino Cordeiro Júnior, who was mediating the panel, highlighted the high level of debate by combining research with clinical practices - important for the implementation of policies public. "The more data, the better for us to understand the needs, to strengthen the work and to search for concrete alternatives to face these issues and improve the care and treatments", he concluded.

The Intersectoral Seminar on Drug Prevention, Awareness and Combat was attended by the Deputy Executive Secretary of the Ministry of Health and professor at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Erno Harzheim, general manager of the Brazilian Federation of Communities Therapeutics, Pablo Kurlander. The event was held in partnership with the ministries of Justice and Public Security, Defense, Infrastructure, Education, Health and Women, Family and Human Rights.