REPRESENTAÇÕES SOCIAIS DE ADOLESCENTES SOBRE A HANSENÍASE

Abstract

Leprosy is an infeccious, dermatoneuroligical desease also recognized as a serious public health threat wich can cause disabilities or deformities. In addition to result in impairments in quality of life, leading to negative stigma, prejudice and psychological problems throughout the life of patient. Adolescents find that leprosy can interfere with their identity and the way they see the world during a difficult phase of changes and adaptations. This study aims to analyze adolescents diagnosed with the disease and their social representations. Qualitative and descriptive research was carried out, based on the Theory of Social Representations. It was considered as an adolescent a person between the age of 12 or 18 according to the Statute of Children and Adolescent. Nine adolescents were interviewed with four open questions relevant to the topic. To analyse and process the data we used the technique of Collective Subject Discourse through this technique the Qualiquantisoft® summaries program was made up. The teens perceived themselves as having an stigmatizing disease with pain, fear suffering and sorrow. The fear of spreading the disease and the self prejudice was striking. It was found that images of the disease caused social ramifications such as food that shouldn t be consumed, drug therapy was seen as the only effective means for a cure dy the adolescents. Social ramifications guide the adolescents behavior wich is wich important in helping them protect themselves against stigmatizing attitudes from others. The Social Representations of adolescents in this study are influenced by the social memory of leprosy, wich are present in your imagination. Leprosy is for them a stigmatizing disease with high potential triggering a process of stress, pain and suffering before the mention or suspected diagnosis, with very strong imagery that refer to the deformed and/or mutilated bodies.