The use of medications by elderly men with polypharmacy: representations and practices

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: this study aimed to investigate and understand the use of medications by elderly men, their representations and the subsequent practices. METHODS: this is a qualitative, descriptive and exploratory study, in which there participated 17 elderly men, with polypharmacy, and assisted under the Family Health Strategy in the Municipality of Dourados in the Brazilian state of Mato Grosso do Sul (MS). RESULTS: the results show that most of the medications are used for treating cardiovascular disorders. The elderly men develop strategies considering the prescription of these, adapting in line with their own perceptions and meanings. From these tactics emerge representations on youth and old age, in which old age is associated with illness. In addition, practices were observed which sought to associate the use of medications with medicinal plants, re-signifying the process of being ill. Different perspectives of masculinity permeate the use of medications, sometimes reinforcing hegemonic conceptions, and sometimes revealing alternate models of masculinity. The woman is present in the care with the use of the medications. CONCLUSIONS: in this context, the health team, above all that of nursing, must assist the elderly man in his practices of medication, taking into account his representations, his protagonism, and the role of the woman as a support in the care.