[Health advocacy in contemporary Brazil].

The concept of health advocacy is presented by means of a description of its elements, practice and agents. The need to formulate this concept derives from one of the main functions of the university: the identification of social demands and the presentation of alternatives that aim at eliminating obstacles to their fulfillment. Social participation, as guaranteed by the 1988 Constitution, understood as an opportunity for the development of mechanisms for the construction of citizenship, especially as related to the conquist of the right to health, is emphasized.