BALANÇO DA PRODUÇÃO DE CONHECIMENTO SOBRE EDUCAÇÃO NÃO ESCOLAR DE ADULTOS: EDUCAÇÃO POPULAR EM SAÚDE, 1998-2006

The context of the 14 works (dissertations and theses) analyzed in this article is the Brazilian Health System - Sistema Unico de Saude – in that which refers to its public services. The Family Health Program is the most recurrent theme and, following this, the work which focuses on the study of health agents that use popular education in their educational activities. In all of them the education agents were health professionals, connected to public service. Qualitative methodology predominated with the intention of showing the relevance and potential of educational work in health. The studies draw a picture that reveals the dynamism found in the development of sanitation practices with an educational characteristic at the local level, and its potential, in spite of the many limitations explicitly made evident, while showing this important interface between health and education that demands continuous investigation.