Critical health education in the amazonian territory: an experience report in VER-SUS Amazônia

Abstract

This article aims to analyze how educational experiences developed within the Vivências e Estágios na Realidade do Sistema Único de Saúde Program contribute to the development of critical health education through immersion in Amazonian territories. This is an experience report concerning an immersion carried out in May 2025 in the city of Belém, involving students and residents in the health field in activities conducted across urban, rural, and riverside territories. The experience included visits to health services, community organizations, and social movements, enabling direct contact with different expressions of social and territorial inequalities, as well as with local practices of care and resistance. The systematization of the experience was based on field diary records, reflective accounts, and collective discussion sessions, which were subsequently organized into thematic axes of analysis. The reflections showed that engagement with the territories helps challenge traditional conceptions of health work, broadening the understanding of the public health system as a concrete social practice shaped by structural challenges and collective strengths. It is concluded that educational experiences of this nature strengthen critical learning processes by integrating lived experience, reflection, and ethical-political commitment, thereby contributing to the education of professionals who are more sensitive to inequalities and more committed to the defense of life and social justice.