Interview: Victor Valla

Abstract

Public Health and Education are the main areas to which Professor Victor Vincent Valla has been devoting himself since he arrived in Brazil in the 60s. Graduated in Education, with a Master degree and a PhD in Social History by the University of São Paulo (USP) and a post-doctoral degree by the University of California, Valla is now titular researcher at the Samuel Pessoa Department of Endemic Diseases of the National School of Public Health Sergio Arouca (Ensp), researcher at the Research Laboratory for Practices of Integrality in Health (Lappis) and assistant professor at the Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro (UFF). Valla is the author of a large number of works on culture, social participation, civil rights and religiosity, in which he explores the intrinsic relationship between these themes and the field of education in the area of health. In this interview, he discusses the concept and the practices of popular education, the notion of 'technical training', religious culture, poverty and public health, giving emphasis to the need to understand the perceptions and everyday life of the less privileged classes and strongly suggesting that this understanding can significantly improve the training of health professionals and, consequently, the Brazilian Health System (SUS).