Drugs, AIDS and harm reduction in Londrina

Based on a documentary analysis, this study sought to evaluate the Brazilian Ministry of Health’s monitoring of the harm reduction project run by the Associação Londrinense Interdisciplinar de Aids - ALIA (Londrinense Interdisciplinary AIDS Association), using as the material analyzed its information recording instruments called progress and technical-narrative reports. It also sought to evaluate the effectiveness of the project’s actions, which aim, from a health point of view, to assist drug users without requiring abstinence from drug use. We built up a theoretical framework on drugs and their implications, and we also looked at public social policies, especially those designed to assist drug users. As a methodological procedure, we built axes for analysis, based on the documents studied. The final synthesis points to the importance of implementing actions to prevent and control AIDS.