Today, the articulation between public power and the non-profit organizations is an important tool at the public politics development. To transform successful projects, elaborated and applied by the civil society, in governmental projects is a way to amplify the beneficiaries scale, starting from an already tested and approved methodology, thus with more chances and effectiveness. This is what is happening with the social inclusion methodology developed by Associação Saúde Criança Renascer, which inspired health public politics and social assistance at the city of Belo Horizonte, capital of Minas Gerais.

Saúde Criança and the City Hall of Belo Horizonte just signed the Term of Cooperation to apply the Family Action Plan (FAP), Saúde Criança's methodology at CRAS Jardim Felicidade as part of its government project "Programa BH Cidadania" (BH Citizenship program). Since 1991, the non-profit uses the FAP to assist children and families from Hospital da Lagoa, who live below the poverty line, with the objective of promoting self-sufficiency and breaking the admission/readmission cycle. Up to date Saúde Criança has assisted more than 2.500 families and 8.600 children, with a readmission cycle index reduced at almost zero.

Inspired by this initiative, other institutions from the civil society, are using Saúde Criança's methodology - currently applying it in 24 public hospitals throughout Brazil. However, this is the first time that Saúde Criança's FAP is going to be used by a governmental power.

What is PAF - Programa de Ação Familiar - (FAP) - Family Action Plan

The propose of FAP is to work acting at the process of admission/readmission cycle caused by the lack of basic structures and conditions to the continuous treatment of health at home. Based on the principal that illness is not caused by biological factors alone, FAP works to break the vicious cycle of poverty » illness » admission » release » readmission of children » death, through a continuous assistance to the children and their families, even after the release from the hospital families are made aware of how they can help themselves overcome their difficulties, moving toward improvement of the family environment that ultimately determines the outcome of a child's physical health and life expectancy.

The Family Action Plan encompasses 5 areas: health, Income, Housing, Education and Citizenship. The families are selected by a multidisciplinary team from Hospital de Lagoa, composed by doctors, nurses and social assistants, and the preference is given to those with greater social risk. Each family has their own Action Plan since the conditions vary. The assessment occurs monthly when the parent responsible for the children comes to Saúde Criança's headquarters so that the family's current condition may be analyzed and necessary adjustments may be implemented.

At this visit the parent receives, according to the family needs, clothes, food, medicine, etc - or access to services such as: help to get official documents, and social benefits, professional orientation, children recreation program, nutrition and others.

The FAP inspiring public politics

Differently from what happens at Rede Saúde Criança, the family action plan will not be applied at hospitals but instead will reach the entire population of Jardim Felicidade (4.500 people), an area of very low income per capita. It will be completely managed by the Secretaria Municipal de Políticas Sociais and by the Secretaria Municipal Adjunta de Assistência Social. Maintaining its own characteristics, the project of assistance of Minas combine the experience of Saúde Criança with the actual structure utilized by the Programa BH Cidadania, building a social assistance plan that works with the five different areas of the Family Action Plan. Currently the pilot project is in place. As a result of a triage conducted with the local population, thirty families, presenting the lowest indices of social development, have been selected to integrate the program. In addition, partnerships with other non-governmental organizations have been established to offer assist in this enterprise.

Dr. Vera Cordeiro is Fellow ASHOKA, Leader AVINA, Social Entrepreneur SCHWAB FOUNDATION and SKOLL FOUNDATION and Board of PATH