Introduction:

Overcoming the global crisis of the biomedical paradigm has promoted the insertion of Traditional Medicine in public health systems in many countries. Brazil is at the forefront of this movement, and since the launch of the National Policy on Integrative and Complementary Practices in 2006, it has officially included practices in the health care offered by the SUS. However, low qualification in this area of the professionals who work for the SUS, has hindered the levels of resolution in these services. One of the major challenges is training professionals who would be sensitive to health practices from other cultures and follow a vitalist paradigm. The study hypothesis is that the inclusion of socio-historical-epistemological content of Medical Rationalities during professional training can introduce an effective articulation between different medicines, promoting integrated knowledge.

Objective:

To assess the interest of academics in the topic, which carries little recognition in medical courses in Brazil but has been increasingly valued and incorporated into medical education in many countries.

Method:

This is a mixed-approach study. The qualitative analysis was organized by exploring the data collected with open-ended questions applied to students on the first day of classes and at the end of the course. The cross-sectional analysis was performed using information collected in a closed questionnaire applied to students.

Result:

Considering the questions presented to students at the beginning and the end of the component, expectations were exceeded, with very high assessment levels achieved at the end. The study participants showed interest in new knowledge in the training period. The analyses allow us to assert that including this theme sharpens critical reflection on the paradigms, even though it is presented vertically, punctually, and with an informative character, in the context of the course. There was great interest from participants in disciplines that addressed this scientific field.

Conclusion:

There are good prospects for the integration and complementarity of new knowledge and health practices in medical education in the reality of the studied course.

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