Decades explaining Medicine in the language of the neighbourhood.
Between 1992 and 2008, Pedro signed texts in the Jornal Zona Sul and other papers. They are documents of their time: Medicine has moved on, and none of them replaces current advice.
1992
- Cardiovascular preventionDoes Cholesterol Kill?First text of the series preserved in the archive. Pedro explains HDL, LDL and VLDL in plain language and links the topic to preventing coronary disease.
- Coronary riskDoes Cholesterol Kill? (part two)Continuation of the series on atherosclerosis, risk factors and prevention, written for the general reader.
1997
2004
- MedicinesGenerics and similarsGenerics, similar drugs, medicine quality and the relationship of trust between doctor, patient and pharmacy.
- MedicinesMore on genericsA follow-up to the debate on drug substitution and patient safety.
- Medical careOn poor medical careA critical series on Brazilian medical care, its historical structure and the difficulties of patients and professionals.
- Patient safetyDoctor: don't let the pharmacy swap your prescriptionIn defence of respect for the prescription and responsibility in dispensing medicines.
- PharmacologyWhy piperazine should be withdrawnPedro argues for the withdrawal of piperazine, an old anthelmintic, recording a pharmacological debate of his time.
2005
- PreventionTimely considerations on cholesterolA return to cholesterol, thirteen years after the first series, in the same popular health-education language.
- Public healthWhat is the right path for medical care in Brazil?A reflection on outpatient care, salaries, structure and the organisation of medical care.
- Health systemHealth plansA critical analysis of the role of private health plans and their effects on doctors and patients.
2006
- Public healthLack of investment in healthAccess, waiting times and infrastructure linked to insufficient public investment in health.
- Public systemPublic health, againA continuation of his reflection on emergency care, hospitals and the organisation of the public system.
- Care organisationChanges in health careThe changes needed in the public network and in outpatient care.
- Outpatient careThe hospital outpatient clinicQueues, delays and the role of the outpatient clinic in easing pressure on hospitals.
- Working conditionsOn doctors and the Osasco City HallA record of its time on employment, pay and working conditions of doctors in Osasco.
2007
- Medical memoryReminiscences of a doctor's lifeOne of the texts in which Pedro turns clinical experience into narrative, preserving episodes of diagnosis and of his relationship with patients.
- History of carePublic health in BrazilThe historical evolution of public care and the models that preceded today's structure.
- DiagnosisThe laboratory in medical practiceThe role of laboratory tests, their value and the risks of overuse.
- Professional memoryMedicine in Franco da RochaA memory of a professional stint in Franco da Rocha and of a case that marked Pedro.
- General medicineErysipelasHealth education on erysipelas: symptoms, risks and clinical observations of his time.
Press
In 1998 the Diário Popular published the report "Doctor has served the neighbourhood for 30 years", recalling Pedro's practice as a family doctor in Campo Limpo. In the 2000s, the Jornal Zona Sul ran series signed by him on generics, public health, emergencies, cholesterol and laboratory tests.
The original clippings are with the family and will be digitised. Until then, each article has its own address, year, topic and summary, so the text is more than a name on a list.
Felipe Guedes did not grow up with his father. He knows Pedro through the stories, and loves him for them. What he keeps most is the doctor who treated for free those who could not pay: a way of looking at people, not at money, that Felipe carries with him.