[Discourses on the role and representativeness of municipal health conferences in Brazil].

Society's participation in health policymaking is an underlying principle of the Brazilian public health system. The study analyzed participants' discourses on the role and representativeness of municipal health conferences. The study was conducted in five municipalities (counties) in Mato Grosso State, Brazil, in 2009-2010. Thirty social actors were interviewed, including municipal health council members and health system administrators, planners, city council members, and members of the office of the public prosecutor. Data were analyzed using the Qualiquantisoft software for the elaboration of the collective subject's discourse. The discourses identified by the study showed a consensus on the importance of the municipal health council, even among those who questioned the effectiveness of its planning and administrative decisions. The studied revealed discourses resulting from interpretations based on different theoretical traditions. The collective discourses presented both complementary and conflicting arguments, seeking greater resonance and influence in the public health sphere and political system and greater administrative power.