Prison-territory, cell-home: Caring for People Deprived of their Liberty at the Papuda Penitentiary Complex – Federal District

Abstract

This article examines prison as a health territory based on a qualitative study conducted in the Prison Primary Health Care Units of the Papuda Penitentiary Complex, in the Federal District, Brazil. The methodology articulated theoretical perspectives of health territorialization with the everyday practices of teams operating under the logic of Primary Health Care (PHC) in contexts of deprivation of liberty. Data were produced by means of participant observation, interviews, focus groups, document analysis, and field narratives. The study identified care strategies that challenge the dominant punitive logic and affirm health as a right in contexts of exception. The findings reveal that the prison territory is characterized by controlled circulation, institutional restrictions, multiple territorialities, and an intense production of subjectivity. Initiatives such as the use of written notes called ‘catataus’ the recognition of prison cells as a form of domicile, and practices related to mental health care are highlighted. It is concluded that, although the prison

environment imposes significant challenges to the implementation of PHC, there is considerable potential in the micropolitical practices developed by health teams. Understanding prison as a health territory therefore constitutes an ethical, political, and technical proposal to strengthen care within the prison system and to expand the role of Brazil’s Unified Health System (SUS) in addressing the needs of vulnerable populations.