Medicinal plant use in primary health care: an integrative review

Medicinal plant (MP) use supports comprehensiveness of care in Primary Health Care (PHC), enabling appreciation of popular knowl-edge and self-care. This integrative literature re-view aims to analyze researches that approach the insertion of using MP in PHC. PICO strategy was used as a guideline in search of evidence, reuniting 18 articles published between January 2015 and August 2020, in the Virtual Health Library and PubMed databases. The variables of analysis were knowledge of PHC healthcare professionals about MP and associated policies, MP use by its users, highlighting their profile, the reasons that lead to the use and lack of security in MP use. The results show insufficient knowledge of healthcare pro-fessionals about Integrative and Complementary Practices policies and the medicinal uses of plants. The main users are women, elderly, with low income and education, either in Brazil or other countries. Regarding safety in MP use, frequently there is no correct identification of species, its or-igin, its preparation and the appropriate dose for each case. Finally, failure to approach these con-tents during training of healthcare professionals generates less knowledge, less research and more prejudice due to lack of information, impairing incentive and dissemination to the community.

Automated summary

The use of medicinal plants in Primary Health Care supports a comprehensive approach to care, but there is insufficient knowledge among healthcare professionals about Integrative and Complementary Practices policies and the medicinal uses of plants. Main users of medicinal plants are typically women, elderly individuals, with low income and education levels, either in Brazil or other countries. Safety concerns in medicinal plant use often stem from a lack of correct identification, origin, preparation methods, and appropriate dosages for each case.