einstein (São Paulo). 09/Jun/2026;24((spe1)):eRW2282.
Reconstructing medical practice: political-philosophical reflections on care from a Brazilian healthcare context
DOI: 10.31744/einstein_journal/2026RW2282
ABSTRACT
This essay presents a political-philosophical reflection on the need to reconstruct health practices in order to make them more effective and sensitive in identifying and responding to the needs of diverse individuals and populations. To this end, it draws on the experience of health sector reforms in Brazil and the development of the Brazilian Public Health System, focusing in particular on the relevance of three conceptual constructs associated with this process: comprehensiveness, vulnerability, and care. Inspired by philosophical hermeneutics (Gadamer, Ricoeur), the discussion emphasizes the importance of a broader and more integrated understanding of health needs; the use of social markers of difference as indicators of vulnerabilities that require differentiated responses from health services and policies; and the value of a dialogical approach to health practices that is existentially sensitive and informed by multiple forms of knowledge, enabling productive integration of technical efficacy with practical success.
2
