Abstract
Introduction:
Between 1500 and 1822, Brazil was under the colonial rule of Portugal, and it was only in 1808 that the first two official medical schools were opened in its territory. For more than three centuries after the European discovery of Brazil, the lack of local institutions to train health professionals was a problem for a population vulnerable to both tropical and imported diseases. In this context, the knowledge, beliefs and practices of Jesuit priests, indigenous shamans and enslaved Africans predominated, often with conflicting perspectives.
Development:
This essay aims to address the teaching of health care in colonial Brazil and reflect on this historical period and its influences on the training of doctors in the country.
Conclusion:
Medical education is currently facing many challenges, and we understand that pedagogical, scientific and technological advances must be adopted, but without disregarding the historical and cultural context and the plurality of the population and the national health system. More than five hundred years have passed since the arrival of the Portuguese, and to this day Brazil remains a country with unique territorial, ethnic, cultural, economic and religious complexity.
Keywords:
Medical Education; History of Medicine; Teaching