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This page is an AI-assisted Turkish summary of the study presented at the 26th World Congress of Psychiatry. The study belongs to the presenting authors; please refer to the original source when citing it.

EV0716

Belo Horizonte’s psychosocial care network: historical context, strengths, and challenges in an experience report

PSYCHOSOCIAL CARE NETWORK OF BELO HORIZONTE: HISTORICAL CONTEXT, POTENTIALITIES, AND CHALLENGES IN AN EXPERIENCE REPORT

Belo Horizonte’s psychosocial care network offers a well-established, nationally recognized model aligned with the principles of the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform, but its sustainability requires ongoing investment and expanded access.

The study aims to describe the implementation of the Psychosocial Care Network (RAPS) in Belo Horizonte, one of the central strategies of the Unified Health System within the context of the Brazilian Psychiatric Reform, including its historical foundations, strengths, and challenges. The poster states that the reform, which gained momentum from the 1980s onward and was institutionalized through Law No. 10.216/2001, aimed to replace the hospital-centered model with a locally organized, community-based care network. The methodology is an experience report based on professional practice in RAPS services in Belo Horizonte, including primary care and specialized services, examining care experiences, coordination across the network, and the management of cases involving severe mental disorders and substance use. The findings indicate that the network has extensive local reach, integrating primary care, Mental Health Reference Centers (CERSAM), and psychosocial rehabilitation services, with a pathway extending from primary care to CERSAM and onward to psychosocial rehabilitation and the community. Its strengths are identified as longitudinal care, multidisciplinary practice, matrix support, local integration, and robust services that provide alternatives to psychiatric hospitalization. Challenges include service overload, geographical inequalities, fragile intersectoral coordination, continuity of care, and complex cases involving substance use. In conclusion, the report emphasizes that a strong community-based network depends on access, continuity, intersectoral coordination, and ongoing investment; this experience provides a model for other systems developing community-based mental health networks.

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