Cancer care in Brazil: structure and geographical distribution.

BACKGROUND: The organisation and systematisation of health actions and services are essential to ensure patient safety and the effectiveness and efficiency of cancer care. The objective of this study was to analyse the structure of cancer care envisaged in Brazilian norms, describe the types of accreditations of cancer services and their geographic distribution, and determine the planning and evaluation parameters used to qualify the health units that provide cancer care in Brazil. METHODS: This observational study identified the current organisation of cancer care and other health services that are accredited by Brazil's national health system (SUS) for cancer treatment as of February 2017. The following information was collected from the current norms and the National Registry of Health Establishments: geographic location, type of accreditation, type of care, and hospital classification according to annual data of the number of cancer surgeries. The adequacy of the number of licensed units relative to population size was assessed. The analysis considered the facilitative or restrictive nature of policies based on the available rules and resources. RESULTS: The analysis of the norms indicated that these documents serve as structuring rules and resources for developing and implementing cancer care policies in Brazil. A total of 299 high-complexity oncology services were identified in facilities located in 173 (3.1%) municipalities. In some states, there were no authorised services in radiotherapy, paediatric oncology and/or haematology-oncology. There was a significant deficit in accredited oncology services. CONCLUSIONS: The parameters that have been used to assess the need for accredited cancer services in Brazil are widely questioned because the best basis of calculation is the incidence of cancer or disease burden rather than population size. The results indicate that the availability of cancer services is insufficient and the organisation of the cancer care network needs to be improved in Brazil.

A integração das Unidades de Pronto Atendimento (UPA) com a rede assistencial no município do Rio de Janeiro, Brasil / The integration of the Emergency Care Units (UPA) with healthcare services in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil / Integración de las Unidades de Atención de Emergencia (UPA) con la red sanitaria en el municipio de Rio de Janeiro, Brasil

No município do Rio de Janeiro, a implantação das Unidades de Pronto Atendimento 24h (UPA) foi o fio condutor da política de saúde e modelo para estruturação da rede de urgência e emergência (RUE). Este estudo analisou a integração das UPAs na rede assistencial do município. Foram realizadas nove entrevistas, com gestores centrais e locais, analisadas à luz da Teoria da Estruturação de Giddens. Resultados mostraram pouca integração das UPAs, por deficiências estruturais da rede de serviços e fragmentação gerencial, pela ausência de governança unificada. Apesar do investimento político e financeiro, essa estratégia não logrou contornar os problemas de integração entre as unidades de saúde e, ainda, ressaltou a baixa prioridade governamental para a atenção básica. Assim, as UPAs pouco contribuíram para o desenvolvimento de redes de atenção à saúde e para a reorientação do modelo assistencial.

The launching of Emergency Care Units (UPA in Portuguese) was a prominent health policy in the city of Rio de Janeiro during recent years. The aim of this study was to examine UPAs’ integration with other health services in order to assess their impact on the development of integrated healthcare networks. Nine interviews with state and local managers, UPAs’ coordinators and primary care units’ coordinators were performed. The data collected were interpreted under Giddens’ Structuration Theory. UPAs presented a low level of integration with other healthcare facilities within local emergency care network, due to structural problems as well as managerial fragmentation. In spite of the political and financial investment, the strategy of the UPAs has not been able to overcome the low degree of integration among local health services. Moreover, primary care services remain a lower priority. Thus, UPAs have contributed in lesser extent to the development of integrated healthcare networks.

En el municipio de Rio de Janeiro, la implementación de las Unidades de Atención de Emergencia (UPA) fue principio rector de la política de salud y modelo para la estructuración de la red de emergencia (RUE). Esta encuesta analizó la integración de las UPA con otros servicios de salud. Fueran realizadas nueve entrevistas con los gerentes centrales y locales, interpretadas según la Teoría de la Estructuración de Anthony Giddens. Los resultados mostraron poca integración de las UPA, causadas por debilidades estructurales de la red y por la fragmentación de la gestión de los servicios. A pesar de la inversión política y financiera, esta estrategia no ha logrado superar los problemas de integración entre los servicios de salud, señalando la baja prioridad que el gobierno coloca para la atención primaria y el poco desarrollo de las redes de atención a la salud.

[Integral care, a SUS (Brazilian Unified Health System) guideline for the sanitary surveillance]. / Integralidade, uma diretriz do SUS para a vigilância sanitária.

The sanitary surveillance (Visa) performs several practices, on different objects and its actions are guided by principles and guidelines of the SUS. It was done a critical reflection on the interaction conditions of practice in Visa, with a constitutional proposition of the SUS: integral care. The analysis was based on the theory of structuration (Giddens) that considers mobilization of structural resources as dimensions of social interaction, which would justify the legitimacy exercised since the standards. Have been analyzed the following categories: Visa and its insertion within the SUS; the integral care and the Visa; and political impediments. The Visa has been organized by National Health Surveillance Agency. Nowadays it has as sanitary responsibilities, communication with society and health promotion. The proposal of the literature concerning integral care is based on the assistance issue. The organization of the services in the different federative entities is the sense of integral care most adopted by Visa. Political impediments focus on the institutional renewal, on the conflicts of interest arena, on the distance between formulated policies and established practices and gaps concerning work management and the insufficiency of financial support.

Integralidade, uma diretriz do SUS para a vigilância sanitária / Integral care, a SUS (Brazilian Unified Health System) guideline for the sanitary surveillance

A vigilância sanitária atua através de práticas e objetos diversos e suas ações são orientadas pelos mesmos princípios e diretrizes do Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS). Propusemos uma reflexão crítica sobre as condições de interação da prática de vigilância sanitária com uma proposição constitucional do SUS, a integralidade. Realizou-se uma análise baseada na Teoria da Estruturação, de Giddens, que considera a mobilização de recursos estruturais como uma dimensão de interação social que justifica a legitimação exercida pela sanção de normas. Foram ordenadas como categorias de análise: Visa e sua inserção no SUS; o princípio da integralidade e a Visa; e entraves políticos. A vigilância sanitária vem-se organizando a partir da Anvisa e atualmente assume novas responsabilidades sanitárias, entre elas a comunicação com a sociedade e ações de promoção da saúde. A discussão na literatura para a integralidade baseia-se no aspecto assistencial. A organização dos serviços nos diferentes entes federativos é o sentido de integralidade mais incorporado pela Visa. Os entraves políticos estão na renovação institucional, na arena de conflitos de interesses, na distância entre políticas formuladas e instituídas, e nas lacunas referentes à gestão do trabalho e à insuficiência do financiamento.

The sanitary surveillance (Visa) performs several practices, on different objects and its actions are guided by principles and guidelines of the SUS. It was done a critical reflection on the interaction conditions of practice in Visa, with a constitutional proposition of the SUS: integral care. The analysis was based on the theory of structuration (Giddens) that considers mobilization of structural resources as dimensions of social interaction, which would justify the legitimacy exercised since the standards. Have been analyzed the following categories: Visa and its insertion within the SUS; the integral care and the Visa; and political impediments. The Visa has been organized by National Health Surveillance Agency. Nowadays it has as sanitary responsibilities, communication with society and health promotion. The proposal of the literature concerning integral care is based on the assistance issue. The organization of the services in the different federative entities is the sense of integral care most adopted by Visa. Political impediments focus on the institutional renewal, on the conflicts of interest arena, on the distance between formulated policies and established practices and gaps concerning work management and the insufficiency of financial support.