Head of Brazil’s Sarah public hospital chain wins int’l award

Neuroscientist Dr. Lúcia Willadino Braga, the president of the Brazil’s public hospital chain Sarah—known as Rede Sarah—received the Distinguished Career Award from the International Neuropsychological Society (INS), granted to scientists that made a remarkable contribution to the field.

The award ceremony was held in Rio de Janeiro last night (Jul 10), during an annual INS meeting, hosted by Brazil this year. Dr. Braga is the first Latin American to win the accolade. Moments before being handed the award, she talked to our reporters at Agência Brasil.

Agência Brasil: How much knowledge do we have about the human brain?

Dr. Braga: Very little, I believe—but a lot more than we knew 20 years ago. Still, 20 years from now, we’ll definitely think we knew little today. We have a lot to discover in the brain. Our knowledge grows every day. This is beautiful, the way knowledge builds up. The cool thing about this moment is that Brazil is taking part in the construction of knowledge about Neuroscience in the global landscape. This is very important for the country.

Agência Brasil: Has a lot changed in Neuroscience in 40 years?

Dr. Braga: Back then, all we had was X-rays; we didn’t even have tomography. We had to use behavior to prove just about anything. Now, however, we can demonstrate behavioral changes and changes that take place in the brain. Later on, neuroimaging technology enabled us to see how the brain operates, so our analysis became much deeper regarding everything that happens in the brain, and we started to discover much about the brain we did not know about. So, the past few years have been full of discoveries among neuroscientists, as a result of the strides in diagnostic technology.

Agência Brasil: What role do you think this recognition plays for you and for Brazil?

Dr. Braga: I think it’s really important, because it portrays Brazil as a nation that generates knowledge. And when the award recognizes your career, your background, it's not just me, but also my colleagues at Rede Sarah. You can’t achieve anything by yourself. I worked alongside other Brazilian scientists. So it’s not an award for me, but for all Brazilians.

Agência Brasil: It’s also a way to encourage young people going to university, right?

Dr. Braga: Yes. We need to dive deeper into Neuroscience. There’s a lot to be discovered, and amazing people in the country. We’ll give opportunities for these people to do research—students, young people, people interested in unraveling the mysteries of the human brain.

Agência Brasil: Should people aged 50 or 60 continue studying in order to preserve neuroplasticity?

Dr. Braga: Learning is key. Studying must be ongoing. You can continue building brain networks after the age of 50 or 60. Indeed, you should. We used to think it was no longer possible, that your brain was fully formed after a certain point. What does take place is, your brain becomes specialized over the course of life. So the brain of an adult is more organized than a child’s, who has more plasticity. But that doesn’t mean it’s stagnant. We have to keep going, learning things, exchanging ideas, trading knowledge. Every instance of learning is exercise for the brain.

Agência Brasil: How does Rede Sarah work? Does it receive private investment?

Dr. Braga: Rede Sarah is fully public. And this is proof that public services can be fully operational. Good management, transparency, and zeal allow us to show how much of a possibility this is countrywide. We have to take a better look at Brazil. We have nine branches. Our hospitals are located in Brasília, São Luís, Salvador, Belo Horizonte, Fortaleza, Belém, Macapá, and Rio de Janeiro. We serve some 1.7 million people every year, with humane assistance based on scientific evidence. It’s public throughout. You can reach us online by visiting our website. If you don’t have access to the internet, you can give us a call.