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How did you come
about the idea
of using a blog
for educational
purposes?
I had the idea,
along with other
volunteers and
members of a
Spiritist Group,
some 15 years
ago, having
observed a
marked growth in
the number of
people using
drugs and the
types of drugs
used. We decided
to found a group
to help people
suffering from
chemical
dependency. The
group was named
Apoio Fraterno
(AF), or
Fraternal
Support. After
the first pilot
project, we
began to expand
it. There are
now 19 AFs
across the
country, 14 of
them in Rio
Grande do Sul
state. The blog
was created to
back up the work
of the Fraternal
Support groups,
encouraging the
dissemination of
information,
education and
improving the
general quality
of the help
given to people
suffering the
consequences of
psychoactive
substance use.
Who were the
volunteers who
took part in the
study?
We used the
Google Docs
tool and also
sent
questionnaires
for volunteers
in AF groups.
People from
different
backgrounds and
professions took
part in the
research,
including
housewives,
businessmen,
teachers,
lawyers,
doctors,
dentists and
psychologists.
All of them had
done special
courses to be
able to work as
volunteers in AF
groups,
organised by
AME-Brasil
(Brazil’s
Medical-Spiritist
Association).
How did you
structure the
research?
The data used to
build the blog
were collected
through a
self-completion
questionnaire,
structured
according to the
clinical cases
and sent to
volunteers of
Spiritist
Fraternal
Support groups
in six cities
and towns. The
questions
focused on
technical
knowledge,
emotional
aspects and
spirituality.
Having collected
the
questionnaires,
we produce a
health education
blog, to be
shared by all
volunteers
working in AF
groups,
including those
who did not take
part in the
research. The
study was
carried out in
the second half
of 2015 and
first half of
2016.
What were the
main results of
this study?
We were able to
get a very
accurate
picture, thanks
to the quality
of the research
and the method
of analysis. We
inferred from
the results that
there are gaps
regarding the
knowledge of
chemical
dependency. We
decided them, to
devise a
technological
tool that can be
used for
education
purposes by the
volunteers,
helping them get
better
qualifications
to help those
suffering the
tragedy of
chemical
dependency and
codependency.
How is the blog
structured?
The blog is
structured in a
way that enables
volunteers and
any other person
to search and
access its
contents, as
shown on the
graphics below:
Is there
anything else
concerning your
experience that
you would like
to add?
This AME-Brasil
project reached
universities
little by
little. It was
met initially
with resistance
because of its
ostensive link
to spirituality.
But the
undeniable
scientific
evidence
provided,
showing the
positive effects
on human health,
helped to
eventually knock
down those
barriers and the
project went
ahead. That was
our first
victory. The
second one was
its approval by
the Ethics and
Research
Committee, which
highlighted the
“great social
relevance” of
this volunteer
project.
I was very
happy,
eventually, when
I realised that
the AF groups’
work was
something that
went beyond the
boundaries of
health. It is
closed linked to
a number of
non-formal
education
approaches in
health, social
and
environmental
aspects. The
Fraternal
Support groups’
work follows the
guidelines of
the United
Nations
Conference on
Sustainable
Development, in
2014, which
mentions the
need to ensure a
healthy life and
well-being for
people of all
ages. It also
sets a goal to
reduce by
one-third the
number of
premature deaths
caused by
non-contagious
illnesses
through the
prevention and
treatment of the
abuse of legal
and illegal
substances.
Allan Kardec’s
The Spirits’
Book
mentions clearly
the aim set up
by the AF
groups, which is
to help people
overcome
substance abuse
through moral
education:
There is one
element that has
not been
considered
sufficiently and
economics is
just a theory
without it:
education. Not
merely
intellectual
education, but
moral education,
that which
consists in the
formation of
character and
habits, which
human beings do
not learn from
books. Education
is the sum of
the habits
acquired. When
we consider
that, many
individuals are
lost in the food
of a population
without
principles, or
direction and
are left to
their own
instincts on a
daily basis.
Should we be
surprised by the
disastrous
consequences
that result?
When the art of
education is
properly
understood and
practiced, all
human beings
will have the
habits of
stability and
prudence for
themselves and
for those who
depend on them,
and respect for
what is worthy
of respect.
These habits
will enable them
to endure hard
times with
greater ease.
Chaos and
extravagance are
social handicaps
that only proper
education can
cure, and the
spread of such
education is the
preliminary
element of
social
well-being,
which is the
only guarantee
of security for
all.
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