The several faces of follow-up of hospitalized children

Abstract

This article approaches the technical implications and follow-up policies for hospitalized children in a large-size hospital of Rio de Janeiro in the past two decades. For this purpose, it resumes previous studies considering the following aspects: the hospitalization conditions for children and their accompanying persons at the public service; the analysis of the functions performed by the accompanying persons; the working conditions, which health professionals are subject to and the general conditions of the public service operations. It concludes that the follow-up implications are not restricted to the guarantee of child’s protection and care, but that they interfere strongly in the institutional dynamics. Participation of third parties in (the) medical assistance (conduction of) to hospitalized children in public and private health units generates direct consequences on the service quality, and also on structures of established power.