The seminar “Mental health challenges in the context of the teaching-care relationship” was held at the Curauma Campus of the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso, organized by the Health Commission of the Association of Regional Universities (AUR), an entity that brings together 22 educational institutions committed to the development of regional communities and territories.
The objective of the activity was to generate a broad analysis, from different perspectives, of the state and current situation of mental health in Chile with a focus on the clinical fields of health centers that receive students studying different careers in that field, and that They must carry out professional practices, internships or internships.
Verónica López, academic at the School of Psychology of the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso and director of the Research Center for Inclusive Education of the PUCV, explained that “when professionals who work in health areas have to go do their practice professional and encounter environments that have not changed in the way that university contexts have, where there are policies and protocols against violence, abuse, harassment and harassment, and that in general have advanced in greater flexibility curricular, and they face clinical fields where that has not changed and the relationships are very hierarchical, there is a need to establish clear expectations, clarification of roles and identification of some students who could be presenting problems.
In this sense, he stressed that it is not necessary to advance by increasing individual mental health care as the sole purpose, but rather that “the quality of learning environments and work environments must be improved, generating policies for university coexistence and good work treatment.” , since it allows us to prevent and identify those situations of students or careers that require more support to advance in a multi-level system,” indicated the academic.
In addition, Claudio Zett, director of the PUCV School of Medical Technology, shared that it is of vital importance in all universities in the country to coordinate the work of clinical field coordinators or clinical practices.
“There is an administrative structure that is in charge of assigning students to the clinical field, where there are tutors who are committed to the teaching care work and there is direct supervision of a person to accompany the students and know what their emotional situation is every day. every day to help them in a timely manner, however many more resources and tools are required,” said the academic, who also referred to the clinical fields law that seeks to ensure the quality, relevance and coordination of the health benefits offered by the universities with hospitals when filling places for the training of health professionals.
MENTAL HEALTH
Cristian Gálvez López, director of the Valparaíso – San Antonio Health Service, maintained that “mental health problems in Chile are not new, although they have increased in a post-pandemic context. From the health services, a set of actions and analyzes have been initiated to better impact the working and student community, which allows improving care conditions.”
Along the same lines, the director stressed the difference between preventive mental health actions in the context of a teacher-care relationship and situations of abuse. “Today, our legal system and internal protocols establish reporting mechanisms, both for workers and students, however, promotion and prevention actions are the ones we have to develop in a better way and that is why I believe that this meeting contributes to what we must achieve.”
Marcelo Díaz, head of the training and training department of the Viña del Mar – Quillota Health Service, commented that we are facing a challenge that has two components. “We must be able to generate common spaces with universities to form and change cultures.” That is why he highlighted the importance of the so-called Karin Law in a context where “we have to create spaces so that both the student who enters and the professional who supervises him, have the conditions of being in a place where they can focus only on the learning,” he indicated.
It should be noted that this legal initiative seeks to protect both private and public workers in matters of workplace, sexual harassment and violence at work. The new standard establishes duties for employers in matters of prevention, investigation and sanction, incorporating a protocol that must have the minimum content provided in article 211-A of the Labor Code, following the rules established in Circular No. 3813 issued by the Superintendency of Social Security.
Finally, Manuel Bravo Mercado, dean of the Faculty of Sciences of the Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso, highlighted the realization of instances of this type that “allow us to know the perceptions, visions and experiences that the different actors have in what for us It is part of a training process.”
