Travelers' narratives: field researchers meet new Brazilian federal medical schools

Abstract

The Formation axis of the More Doctors Program stimulated the implementation of new medical courses at Brazilian federal universities. In this context, an interinstitutional project sought to map these medical schools, providing training spaces in the perspective of the critical friend. This article presents a qualitative research that analyzed the experience of nine travelers - field researchers - in their visits to new schools, through this Project, in 2018. Thematic analysis of the content of 21 travelers' narratives was carried out, with three thematic categories: expectations; meeting with strangers; goodbyes. A collective narrative was woven from the diverse experiences and relationships experienced by travelers, where the wealth and singularities of each school visited emerged, with emphasis on ethical and committed research. The analysis reinforces the possibility of using narratives by field researchers to add subjectivities to investigations about the lived reality.