Alexandre A. Martins, Ph.D.

Alexandre Martins
Alexandre A. Martins, Ph.D.Marquette University

Marquette Hall, 330

MilwaukeeWI53201United States of America(414) 288-3165

Assistant Professor

Highest Degree and Institution

Ph.D., Marquette University

Postdoctoral Fellow, University of Coimbra, Portugal

Courses Taught

HEAL 3200:  Bioethics for Health Care

HEAL 4951:  Global and Community-Based Health

Research Interests

Community Participation in Public Health Decision-Making and Human Rights: Neoliberal Policies and Universal Health Care Coverage in Brazil develops a participatory action research about the relationship between human rights, health care, health-related policies and community participation in the context of Brazil. The Brazilian public health system known as Unified Health System (SUS, acronym in Portuguese) was created after the 1988 Constitution that stated the right to health of all and the duty of the State in ensuring it. Although the right to health is a constitutional right in Brazil, political decisions and policies in the last few years have favored a commodity approach to health care, fostering the private health sector. Consequently, these policies have impacted the SUS in a way that they seem to exacerbate SUS problems and marginalizing vulnerable populations from accessing health care. This project examines these policies and whether or not they have functioned to dismantle the SUS and directed the health care perspective from a right to a privilege and how these policies impact the lives of low-income families by considering two communities in São Paulo, Brazil. Further, this research will engage these two communities and their activities from their local Catholic Church by using a participatory action research method combined with insights from liberation theology. Semi-structured interviews will be performed to understand their experience accessing health care services. The findings of this research will provide education for the communities that participate in the project and also help them to develop strategies and actions for their political engagement in the public health system.

Professional Affiliations

Catholic Theological Ethics in the World Church – CTEWC

Sociedade Brasileira de Teologia Moral – SBTM

Society of Christian Ethics – SCE

Publications

Link to Marquette University E-Publications - Martins

Funding

2020: PI, “Community Participation in Public Health Decision-Making and Human Rights: Neoliberal Policies and Universal Health Care Coverage in Brazil” Regular Research Grant and Summer Faculty Fellowship – Marquette University