Abstract
Mental health professionals are facing increased problem drug use among people undergoing psychiatric treatment. This article aimed to analyze the care offered to these people, users of a psychosocial care network in a city in the state of São Paulo. Qualitative research conducted in three community services, producing field notes based on participant observation and semi-structured interviews with users of services identified with drug use associated with the diagnosis of mental disorders. We sought to identify treatment paths, understandings about them from the perspective of those involved, delineating the reception of this demand in the network and verifying the positions assigned to the users. The care directed to the users of the services was made according to the possibilities of the existing network, being influenced by constructions of sense about drugs and by clinical ideologies in the practices of the services. It was found that mental health services had some tolerance for licit drugs but directed all users of illicit drugs. This promoted descriptions of service users as a "mental health patient" or "drug user", exclusively, positioning them differently in the treatment offered, which, conversely, influenced the listening of other versions of the experiences of consumption and suffering.
Keywords:
comorbidity; dual diagnosis; psychoactive substances; mental disorders; community services; qualitative research