Pay-for-performance for primary health care in Brazil: A comparison with England's Quality Outcomes Framework and lessons for the future.

Pay-for-performance (P4P) has been widely applied in OECD countries to improve the quality of both primary and secondary care, and is increasingly being implemented in low- and middle-income countries. In 2011, Brazil introduced one of the largest P4P schemes in the world, the National Programme for Improving Primary Care Access and Quality (PMAQ). We critically assess the design of PMAQ, drawing on a comparison with England's quality and outcome framework which, like PMAQ, was implemented at scale relatively rapidly within a nationalised health system. A key feature of PMAQ was that payment was based on the performance of primary care teams but rewards were given to municipalities, who had autonomy in how the funds could be used. This meant the incentives felt by family health teams were contingent on municipality decisions on whether to pass the funds on as bonuses and the basis upon which they allocated the funds between and within teams. Compared with England's P4P scheme, performance measurement under PMAQ focused more on structural rather than process quality of care, relied on many more indicators, and was less regular. While PMAQ represented an important new funding stream for primary health care, our review suggests that theoretical incentives generated were unclear and could have been better structured to direct health providers towards improvements in quality of care.

Conflito distributivo: análise do Programa de Melhoria do Acesso e Qualidade da Atenção Básica (PMAQ-AB) em duas capitais nordestinas / Conflicto distributivo: análisis del Programa de Mejora del Acceso y Calidad de la Atención Básica (PMAQ-AB) en dos capitales del nordeste de Brasil / Distributive conflict: analysis of the Program for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care (PMAQ-AB) in two Brazilian northeastern capitals

Este artigo analisa a execução do PMAQ-AB a partir de sua contextualização em um cenário político nacional de profundas transformações, desde o reformismo fraco que promoveu lenta extensão de direitos até o contrarreformismo forte da restauração neoliberal. Para debater os elementos relacionados ao trabalho e às disputas pela distribuição dos recursos públicos, foi realizado estudo de caso com trabalhadores, gestores e conselheiros de saúde em duas capitais do nordeste brasileiro. Os resultados evidenciam o acirramento do conflito distributivo e o resultado desfavorável aos trabalhadores no contexto pós-golpe parlamentar de 2016. As dinâmicas locais expõem processos de contração salarial e individualização das relações de trabalho e a reafirmação da meritocracia como justificativa ideológica da precarização. A isso, trabalhadores se contrapõem pela reafirmação de sua condição coletiva de classe, em favor de benefícios derivados do PMAQ, como recomposição salarial para todos.

Este artículo analiza la realización del PMAQ-AB a partir de su contextualización en un escenario político nacional de profundas transformaciones, desde el reformismo débil que promovió una lenta extensión de derechos contra el reformismo fuerte de la restauración neoliberal. Para discutir los elementos relacionados al trabajo y a las disputas por la distribución en los recursos públicos se realizó un estudio de caso con trabajadores, gestores y consejeros de salud en dos capitales del nordeste brasileño. Los resultados ponen en evidencia el recrudecimiento del conflicto distributivo y el resultado desfavorable para los trabajadores en el contexto post-golpe parlamentario de 2016. Las dinámicas locales exponen procesos de contracción salarial e individualización de las relaciones de trabajo y la reafirmación de la meritocracia como justificativa ideológica de la precarización. A eso se contraponen los trabajadores por medio de la reafirmación de su condición colectiva de clase, en favor del beneficio derivado del PMAQ con la recomposición salarial para todos.

This article analyzes the implementation of the Program for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care (PMAQ-AB) in the context of a national political scenario of deep transformations, from the weak reformism that promoted slow extension of rights to the strong counter-reformism of neoliberal restoration. It is a case study with health workers, managers, and counselors in two capital cities in northeastern Brazil, discussing matters of work and distributive disputes of public resources. Results show the intensification of these conflicts in health and the unfavorable outcome for workers after the parliamentary coup in 2016 political context. Local dynamics expose the wage contraction and individualization of labor relations and the reassertion of meritocracy as an ideological ground for precariousness. Workers oppose this, reaffirming their collective class condition, favoring the benefit derived from PMAQ for fully regaining their group wages.

Elderly Mortality due to Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions and Primary Health Care Coverage in the Federal District.

OBJECTIVES: To describe the mortality coefficients of elderly due to primary care sensitive conditions, from 2008 to 2018, and determine its association with the coverage of the Primary Health Care (Family Health Strategy and Basic Care models) in the Federal District. METHODS: Ecological time series of mortality in Federal District elderly, from 2008 to 2018. The Poisson regression model was applied, considering as significant those with p<0.05, with a CI of 95%. RESULTS: There were 70,503 deaths. There was a decrease in the risk of death of elders due to cardiovascular diseases and diabetes. Higher primary care coverage decreased the chance of death by sensitive conditions, both in Basic Care (OR: 0.994, CI: 0.990-0.998) and in the Family Health Strategy (OR: 0.997, CI: 0.995-0.999). CONCLUSIONS: Primary Care coverage was associated with a lower chance of death of the elderly due to Ambulatory Care Sensitive Conditions, especially in Basic Care.

Performance bonuses and the quality of primary health care delivered by family health teams in Brazil: A difference-in-differences analysis.

BACKGROUND: Pay-for-performance (P4P) programmes to incentivise health providers to improve quality of care have been widely implemented globally. Despite intuitive appeal, evidence on the effectiveness of P4P is mixed, potentially due to differences in how schemes are designed. We exploited municipality variation in the design features of Brazil's National Programme for Improving Primary Care Access and Quality (PMAQ) to examine whether performance bonuses given to family health team workers were associated with changes in the quality of care and whether the size of bonus mattered. METHODS AND FINDINGS: For this quasi-experimental study, we used a difference-in-differences approach combined with matching. We compared changes over time in the quality of care delivered by family health teams between (bonus) municipalities that chose to use some or all of the PMAQ money to provide performance-related bonuses to team workers with (nonbonus) municipalities that invested the funds using traditional input-based budgets. The primary outcome was the PMAQ score, a quality of care index on a scale of 0 to 100, based on several hundred indicators (ranging from 598 to 660) of health care delivery. We did one-to-one matching of bonus municipalities to nonbonus municipalities based on baseline demographic and economic characteristics. On the matched sample, we used ordinary least squares regression to estimate the association of any bonus and size of bonus with the prepost change over time (between November 2011 and October 2015) in the PMAQ score. We performed subgroup analyses with respect to the local area income of the family health team. The matched analytical sample comprised 2,346 municipalities (1,173 nonbonus municipalities; 1,173 bonus municipalities), containing 10,275 family health teams that participated in PMAQ from the outset. Bonus municipalities were associated with a 4.6 (95% CI: 2.7 to 6.4; p < 0.001) percentage point increase in the PMAQ score compared with nonbonus municipalities. The association with quality of care increased with the size of bonus: the largest bonus group saw an improvement of 8.2 percentage points (95% CI: 6.2 to 10.2; p < 0.001) compared with the control. The subgroup analysis showed that the observed improvement in performance was most pronounced in the poorest two-fifths of localities. The limitations of the study include the potential for bias from unmeasured time-varying confounding and the fact that the PMAQ score has not been validated as a measure of quality of care. CONCLUSIONS: Performance bonuses to family health team workers compared with traditional input-based budgets were associated with an improvement in the quality of care.

Estigma, cuidador e criança com síndrome de Down: análise bioética / Stigma, caregivers and the child with Down syndrome: a bioethical analysis / Estigma, cuidador y niño con síndrome de Down: análisis bioético

Resumo Objetivou-se analisar a percepção de pais de crianças com síndrome de Down acerca de estigma social e refletir sobre o tema à luz da bioética. Trata-se de estudo de elaboração e validação de instrumento de medida cujo teste-piloto contou com 106 participantes. Os resultados apontaram que o estigma inferioriza os afetados, acarretando desvantagem social, desemprego, diminuição de recursos financeiros, não aceitação, intolerância, invisibilidade social, menor acesso a serviços de saúde e piora da qualidade de vida. Isso gera efeitos negativos na saúde dos genitores. Concluiu-se que o estigma está presente na sociedade, e por isso faz-se necessário formular políticas públicas que conscientizem os pais e garantam seu direito à saúde. Reconhece-se que apesar de ser mais um elemento de adoecimento, o estigma não deve ser subestimado.

Abstract The aim of this study was to analyze the perception of parents of children with Down syndrome about social stigma and reflect on the theme in the light of bioethics. This study consists of the elaboration and validation of a measurement instrument whose pilot test had 106 participants. Results showed the stigma creates feelings of inferiority on those affected, causing social disadvantage, unemployment, decreased financial resources, non-acceptance, intolerance, social invisibility, less access to health services and worse quality of life. This generates negative effects on the parents' health. It was concluded that stigma is present in society, so public policies that raise awareness among parents and guarantee their right to health are required. Despite being another element of illness, stigma should not be underestimated.

Resumen El objetivo era analizar la percepción de los padres de niños con síndrome de Down sobre el estigma social y reflexionar sobre el tema a la luz de la bioética. Se trata de un estudio de elaboración y validación de un instrumento de medición en cuya prueba piloto contó con 106 participantes. Los resultados señalaron que el estigma inferioriza a los afectados, lo que conlleva desventajas sociales, desempleo, disminución de recursos financieros, no aceptación, intolerancia, invisibilidad social, menor acceso a servicios de la salud y el empeoramiento de la calidad de vida. Esto genera efectos negativos en la salud de los padres. En conclusión el estigma está presente en la sociedad, por lo que es necesario formular políticas públicas que concienticen a los padres y garanticen su derecho a la salud. Hay que reconocer que a pesar de ser un elemento más de enfermedad, el estigma no debe subestimarse.

Persistent, new-onset symptoms and mental health complaints in Long COVID in a Brazilian cohort of non-hospitalized patients.

BACKGROUND: Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infections lead to acute- and chronic Long COVID (LC) symptoms. However, few studies have addressed LC sequelae on brain functions. This study was aimed to examine if acute symptoms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) would persist during LC, and if memory problems would be correlated with sleep, depressive mood, or anxious complaints. METHODS: Our work followed a cohort of 236 patients from two public hospitals of the Federal District in mid-western Brazil. Patients' interviews checked for clinical symptoms during acute and LC (5-8 months after real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction, RT-qPCR). RESULTS: Most cases were non-hospitalized individuals (86.3%) with a median age of 41.2 years. While myalgia (50%), hyposmia (48.3%), and dysgeusia (45.8%) were prevalent symptoms in acute phase, fatigue (21.6%) followed by headache (19.1%) and myalgia (16.1%) commonly occurred during LC. In LC, 39.8% of individuals reported memory complaints, 36.9% felt anxious, 44.9% felt depressed, and 45.8% had sleep problems. Furthermore, memory complaints were associated with sleep problems (adjusted OR 3.206; 95% CI 1.723-6.030) and depressive feelings (adjusted OR 3.981; 95% CI 2.068-7.815). CONCLUSIONS: The SARS-CoV-2 infection leads to persistent symptoms during LC, in which memory problems may be associated with sleep and depressive complaints.

Regionalização em saúde no Brasil: uma análise da percepção dos gestores de Comissões Intergestores Regionais / Health regionalization in Brazil: an analysis of the managers' perceptions of the Regional Intermanager Commissions

Resumo O estudo tem como objetivo conhecer as percepções dos gestores acerca dos avanços, barreiras e desafios do processo regionalização. Estudo qualitativo realizado por meio de 40 entrevistas em profundidade com os gestores das regiões de saúde dos estados do Ceará, Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná, Minas Gerais e Tocantins, analisadas com auxílio do software Iramuteq. O primeiro eixo demonstrou a falta de financiamento, a dificuldade e os esforços para prover as ações e serviços, bem como as iniquidades no acesso. O segundo eixo revelou dinâmica da organização e funcionamento regional, que apresenta avanços, sobretudo no modus operandi da organização regional, que conta com melhorias na organização e no desempenho dos Colegiados Intergestores Regionais. Todavia, demonstrou-se que há que se continuar investindo na construção de coordenação federativa cooperativa para melhor organização e redução das desigualdades regionais.

Abstract The study aims to understand the perceptions of managers about the advances, barriers and challenges of the regionalization process. Qualitative study carried out through 40 in-depth interviews with managers of health regions in the states of Ceará, Mato Grosso do Sul, Paraná, Minas Gerais and Tocantins, analyzed using the Iramuteq software. The first axis demonstrated the lack of funding, the difficulty and efforts to provide actions and services, as well as inequities in access. The second axis revealed the dynamics of the regional organization and functioning, which presents advances, especially in the modus operandi of the regional organization, which includes improvements in the organization and performance of the Regional Inter-Management Collegiate. However, it showed that it is necessary to continue investing in the construction of cooperative federative coordination for better organization and reduction of regional inequalities.

Challenges facing the More Doctors program (Programa Mais Médicos) in vulnerable and peri-urban areas in Greater Brasilia, Brazil.

BACKGROUND: A shortage of physicians, especially in vulnerable and peri-urban areas, is a global phenomenon that has serious implications for health systems, demanding policies to assure the provision and retention of health workers. The aim of this study was to analyze the strategies employed by the More Doctors Program (Programa Mais Médicos) to provide primary care physicians in vulnerable and peri-urban parts of Greater Brasilia. METHODS: The study used a qualitative approach based on the precepts of social constructivism. Forty-nine semi-structured interviews were conducted: 24 with physicians employed as part of the More Doctors program, five with program medical supervisors, seven with secondary care physicians, twelve with primary care coordinators, and one federal administrator. The interviews occurred between March and September 2019. The transcripts of the interviews were submitted to thematic content analysis. RESULTS: The partnership between the Ministry of Health and local authorities was essential for the provision of doctors-especially foreign doctors, most from Cuba, to assist vulnerable population groups previously without access to the health system. There was a notable presence of doctors with experience working with socioeconomically disadvantaged populations, which was important for gaining a better understanding of the effects of the endemic urban violence in the region. The incentives and other institutional support, such as enhanced salaries, training, and housing, transportation, and food allowances, were factors that helped provide a satisfactory working environment. However, the poor state of the infrastructure at some of the primary care units and limitations of the health service as a whole were factors that hampered the provision of comprehensive care, constituting a cause of dissatisfaction. CONCLUSIONS: More Doctors introduced a range of novel strategies that helped ensure a supply of primary care doctors in vulnerable and peri-urban parts of Greater Brasilia. The inclusion of foreign doctors, most from Cuba, was crucial for the success of the health services provided for the local communities, who subsist in violent and socioeconomically deprived urban areas. However, it became clear that barriers from within the health service itself hampered the physicians' capacity to provide a satisfactory service. As such, what is needed for primary care to be effective is not just the recruitment, training, and deployment of doctors, but also investment in the organization of the whole health system.

[How Brazilians access Primary Health Care: evolution and adversities in recent times (2012-2018)]. / Como os brasileiros acessam a Atenção Básica em Saúde: evolução e adversidades no período recente (2012-2018).

The scope of this study is to analyze access to primary care in Brazil between 2012 and 2018, taking into consideration the availability of services and the physical-structural, temporal and organizational characteristics of the primary care units and teams, highlighting the main advances and obstacles to their enhancement in different contexts. It involved a descriptive cross-sectional and longitudinal study, with a quantitative approach based on secondary data from the National Program for the Improvement of Access and Quality of PC and population coverage data from the Ministry of Health. A total of 15,378 teams were selected and data screened from 59,354 users relating to the teams selected for 2012, and 56,369 users for 2018. Improvements were noted with respect to service availability and in terms of physical and architectural structure; the majority of the teams implemented and/or qualified the reception to spontaneous demand, including emergency care, improved the ways of organizing the agenda to foster a more integrated contact between users and health professionals and qualified the ways of scheduling and reduced the waiting times between scheduling and care. However, the persistence of recurring problems that need to be addressed to improve access to primary care in the country was detected.

O objetivo do estudo é analisar o acesso à atenção básica (AB) no Brasil, entre 2012 e 2018, considerando a disponibilidade de serviços, as características físico-estruturais, temporais e organizacionais das unidades básicas de saúde e das equipes, apontando seus principais avanços e obstáculos para a sua melhoria, em diferentes contextos. Estudo descritivo transversal e longitudinal, que utilizou a base de dados secundários do Programa Nacional de Melhoria do Acesso e da Qualidade da AB e dados de cobertura populacional do Ministério da Saúde. Foram selecionadas 15.378 equipes e mobilizados dados de 59.354 usuários referindo-se às equipes selecionadas para 2012 e 56.369 para 2018. Constataram-se melhorias quanto à disponibilidade de serviços e nas condições de estrutura física e arquitetônica; a maioria das equipes implantaram e/ou qualificaram o acolhimento à demanda espontânea, incluindo atendimento a urgências, melhoraram os modos de organização da agenda para favorecer um contato mais fluído entre usuários e profissionais de saúde e qualificaram os modos de agendamento e diminuíram os tempos de espera entre o agendamento e o atendimento. Contudo, foram constatadas a persistência de problemas recorrentes que precisam ser enfrentados para a melhoria do acesso à atenção básica no país.

Pay for performance in primary care: the contribution of the Programme for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care (PMAQ) on avoidable hospitalisations in Brazil, 2009-2018.

BACKGROUND: Evidence on the effect of pay-for-performance (P4P) schemes on provider performance is mixed in low-income and middle-income countries. Brazil introduced its first national-level P4P scheme in 2011 (PMAQ-Brazilian National Programme for Improving Primary Care Access and Quality). PMAQ is likely one of the largest P4P schemes in the world. We estimate the association between PMAQ and hospitalisations for ambulatory care sensitive conditions (ACSCs) based on a panel of 5564 municipalities. METHODS: We conducted a fixed effect panel data analysis over the period of 2009-2018, controlling for coverage of primary healthcare, hospital beds per 10 000 population, education, real gross domestic product per capita and population density. The outcome is the hospitalisation rate for ACSCs among people aged 64 years and under per 10 000 population. Our exposure variable is defined as the percentage of family health teams participating in PMAQ, which captures the roll-out of PMAQ over time. We also provided several sensitivity analyses, by using alternative measures of the exposure and outcome variables, and a placebo test using transport accident hospitalisations instead of ACSCs. RESULTS: The results show a negative and statistically significant association between the rollout of PMAQ and ACSC rates for all age groups. An increase in PMAQ participating of one percentage point decreased the hospitalisation rate for ACSC by 0.0356 (SE 0.0123, p=0.004) per 10 000 population (aged 0-64 years). This corresponds to a reduction of approximately 60 829 hospitalisations in 2018. The impact is stronger for children under 5 years (-0.0940, SE 0.0375, p=0.012), representing a reduction of around 11 936 hospitalisations. Our placebo test shows that the association of PMAQ on the hospitalisation rate for transport accidents is not statistically significant, as expected. CONCLUSION: We find that PMAQ was associated with a modest reduction in hospitalisation for ACSCs.

Integrality and comprehensiveness of service provision in Primary Health Care in Brazil (2012-2018).

OBJECTIVES: to analyze comprehensiveness elements in Primary Care in Brazil, between 2012 and 2018, considering preventive and assistance aspects, pointing out advances and obstacles to its improvement in different contexts. METHODS: a retrospective longitudinal study using data from the Brazilian National Program for Improving Access and Quality in Primary Care. 15,378 teams were selected that participated in both 1st and 3rd cycles of the program. RESULTS: improvements were found in the prevalence of teams that ensure preventive and assistance care for priority groups, who develop promotion actions, offer essential procedures, including oral health, carry out home visits, receive support from Extended Family Health and Primary Care Center, offer integrative and complementary practices and develop intersectoral actions. CONCLUSIONS: there has been an improvement in comprehensiveness in Primary Health services, but problems remain that still need to be faced for their improvement.

Analysis of work-related accidents and ill-health in Brazil since the introduction of the accident prevention factor.

BACKGROUND: Since 2004, Brazil has had a national policy for occupational health and safety. This policy means companies' tax burden is altered according to the numbers of work-related accidents and ill-health amongst their workers. In 2010, a multiplication factor was introduced to this policy, called the Accident Prevention Factor. The idea of this new multiplication factor is to encourage individual employers to take initiatives to prevent accidents and ill health in the workplace. This study was designed to investigate the incidence of work-related accidents and ill-health in Brazil according to their causes, their severity, and the economic activity in which they occur, and to compare the data before and after the introduction of the Accident Prevention Factor. METHODS: An ecological study was conducted by analyzing the time series of work-related accidents/ill-health between 2008 and 2014 from the Brazilian social security system (Previdência Social) statistical yearbooks. Incidences were calculated per cause, economic activity, and severity of the accident/ill-health. Data from before and after the introduction of the Accident Prevention Factor were compared using the Mann-Whitney test per cause and per economic activity. Statistical analyses were made using the SPSS software, with significance set at 5%. RESULTS: A reduction in the incidence of work-related accidents/ill-health was found across all the groups of causes analyzed, except for the groups "external causes of morbidity and mortality" and "factors influencing health status and contact with health services." Greater reductions were found for diseases of the musculoskeletal system and connective tissue and diseases of the nervous system. Reductions in work-related accidents/ill-health were found in the different economic activities and in the different severity groups. The highest reduction after the introduction of the Accident Prevention Factor was in manufacturing and production (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Overall, the incidence of accidents/ill-health was found to be on decline, except those with external causes of morbidity and mortality and those involving factors influencing health status and contact with health services. The biggest reduction was found in manufacturing and production. However, generally speaking progress still needs to be made in accident prevention and occupational health across a whole range of work environments.

[Regional Health Planning in Brazil from the perspective of health managers: advances and challenges]. / Regionalização da saúde no Brasil na perspectiva dos gestores municipais: avanços e desafios.

The scope of this study was to analyze, from the standpoint of managers, the conformity of the process of regionalization in health in Brazil, with emphasis on the main advances and challenges. A mixed exploratory and descriptive study was conducted. In the first stage, an electronic questionnaire was given to managers from all health regions of the country. In the second stage, focus groups were staged with managers in all macro regions. A semi-structured interview was used to encourage managers to speak about the advances and main challenges of the process of regionalization. The data was analyzed using Iramuteq software, more specifically the Descending Hierarchical Classification (DHC), resulting in three main themes: the first deals with the efforts made for the regional organization at the macro level of management, with emphasis on reducing inequalities, actions and services to users; the second demonstrates the regional organization and the difficulties for the organization of the local system; the third reveals difficulties in accessing health services, especially those with greater technological complexity. The research results point to advances and challenges, involving a risk for the structuring of the regionalization process, with bureaucratic and fragmentation implications.

Este estudo teve como objetivo analisar, à luz da percepção dos gestores, a conformação do processo de regionalização em saúde no Brasil, com ênfase nos principais avanços e desafios. Um estudo misto do tipo exploratório e descritivo. Na primeira etapa foi aplicado um questionário eletrônico aos gestores de todas as regiões de saúde do país. Na segunda foram realizados grupos focais com os gestores de todas as macrorregiões. Utilizou-se um roteiro semiestruturado para estimular os gestores a falarem livremente sobre o processo de regionalização, seus avanços e principais desafios. Os dados foram analisados no software Iramuteq, com classificação hierárquica descendente (CHD), o que resultou em três eixos temáticos: o primeiro trata dos esforços realizados para a organização regional no nível mais macro da gestão, com destaque para a redução das desigualdades e o provimento de ações e serviços aos usuários; o segundo mostra a organização regional e as dificuldades para a organização do sistema local; o terceiro evidencia as dificuldades de acesso aos serviços de saúde, sobretudo os de maior complexidade tecnológica. Os resultados da pesquisa apontam para avanços e desafios, envolvendo um risco para a estruturação do processo de regionalização, com nuances burocráticas e fragmentadas.

Integrality and comprehensiveness of service provision in Primary Health Care in Brazil (2012-2018) / Integralidad e integralidad de la prestación de servicios en Atención Primaria en Brasil (2012-2018) / Integralidade e abrangência da oferta de serviços na Atenção Básica no Brasil (2012-2018)

ABSTRACT Objectives: to analyze comprehensiveness elements in Primary Care in Brazil, between 2012 and 2018, considering preventive and assistance aspects, pointing out advances and obstacles to its improvement in different contexts. Methods: a retrospective longitudinal study using data from the Brazilian National Program for Improving Access and Quality in Primary Care. 15,378 teams were selected that participated in both 1st and 3rd cycles of the program. Results: improvements were found in the prevalence of teams that ensure preventive and assistance care for priority groups, who develop promotion actions, offer essential procedures, including oral health, carry out home visits, receive support from Extended Family Health and Primary Care Center, offer integrative and complementary practices and develop intersectoral actions. Conclusions: there has been an improvement in comprehensiveness in Primary Health services, but problems remain that still need to be faced for their improvement.

RESUMEN Objetivos: analizar los elementos de la integralidad en la atención primaria en Brasil, entre los años 2012 y 2018, considerando aspectos preventivos y asistenciales, señalando avances y obstáculos para su mejora, en diferentes contextos. Métodos: estudio longitudinal retrospectivo con datos del Programa Nacional de Mejoramiento del Acceso y la Calidad en Atención Primaria. Se seleccionaron 15,378 equipos que participaron tanto en el primer como en el tercer ciclo del programa. Resultados: hubo mejoras en la prevalencia de equipos que aseguran la atención preventiva y asistencial a los grupos prioritarios, que desarrollan acciones de promoción, ofrecen procedimientos esenciales, incluida la salud bucal, realizan visitas domiciliarias, reciben apoyo del Centro de Salud de la Familia Extendida y Atención Primaria, ofrecer prácticas integradoras y complementarias y desarrollar acciones intersectoriales. Conclusiones: hubo una mejora en la integralidad de los servicios básicos de salud, pero persisten problemas que aún deben ser afrontados para su mejora.

RESUMO Objetivos: analisar elementos da integralidade na Atenção Básica no Brasil, entre os anos de 2012 e 2018, considerando aspectos preventivos e assistenciais, apontando avanços e obstáculos para a sua melhoria, em diferentes contextos. Métodos: estudo longitudinal retrospectivo utilizando dados do Programa Nacional de Melhoria do Acesso e da Qualidade da Atenção Básica. Foram selecionadas 15.378 equipes que participaram tanto do 1o quanto do 3o ciclo do programa. Resultados: constataram-se melhorias na prevalência de equipes que asseguram cuidados preventivos e assistenciais para grupos prioritários, que desenvolvem ações de promoção, ofertam procedimentos essenciais, incluindo saúde bucal, realizam visitas domiciliares, recebem apoio do Núcleo Ampliado de Saúde da Família e Atenção Básica, ofertam práticas integrativas e complementares e desenvolvem ações intersetoriais. Conclusões: houve melhoria da integralidade nos serviços básicos de saúde, mas permanecem problemas que ainda precisam ser enfrentados para o seu aperfeiçoamento.

Regionalization for health improvement: A systematic review.

Regionalization is the integrated organization of a healthcare system, wherein regional structures are responsible for providing and administrating health services in a specific region. This method was adopted by several countries to improve the quality of provided care and to properly utilize available resources. Thus, a systematic review was conducted to verify effective interventions to improve health and management indicators within the health services regionalization. The protocol was registered in PROSPERO (CRD42016042314). We performed a systematic search in databases during February and March 2017 which was updated in October 2020. There was no language or date restriction. We included experimental and observational studies with interventions focused on regionalization-related actions, measures or policies aimed at decentralizing and organizing health offerings, rationalizing scarce capital and human resources, coordinating health services. A methodological assessment of the studies was performed using instruments from the Joanna Briggs Institute and GRADE was also used to assess outcomes. Thirty-nine articles fulfilled the eligibility criteria and sixteen interventions were identified that indicated different degrees of recommendations for improving the management of health system regionalization. The results showed that regionalization was effective under administrative decentralization and for rationalization of resources. The most investigated intervention was the strategy of concentrating procedures in high-volume hospitals, which showed positive outcomes, especially with the reduction of hospitalization days and in-hospital mortality rates. When implementing regionalization, it must be noted that it involves changes in current standards of health practice and in the distribution of health resources, especially for specialized services.

Workers' Health in Brazil: Accidents recorded by Social Security from 2008 to 2014.

OBJECTIVES: to analyze the incidence of occupational accidents in Brazil, recorded by Social Security according to the geographic regions, age group, gender and their prevalence according to the causes and branch of economic activity. METHODS: ecological descriptive study with time series analysis from 2008 to 2014. Data on the beginning and end of the historical series were compared in each ecological unit studied. RESULTS: the South and Southeast regions, male, between 20 and 49 years of age presented the highest falls in incidence. 70.87% of the causes occurred in group XIX of ICD-10. The economic activity with the highest prevalence of accidents was the manufacturing industry. CONCLUSIONS: accidents at work have decreased in Brazil, however, the incidence is still high. Advances need to be made in the recording of accidents and in the prevention and surveillance of workers' health.

Violence against adolescents: analysis of health sector notifications, Brazil, 2011-2017. / Violências contra adolescentes: análise das notificações realizadas no setor saúde, Brasil, 2011-2017.

INTRODUCTION: Violence experienced in adolescence results in serious damage and suffering to society. This study aims to characterize the profile of violence victims and likely perpetrators of violence against adolescents, as well as to describe the percentage of notifying municipalities according to the federation unit. METHODS: Cross-sectional study conducted with data on notification of violence against adolescents from the Information System for Notifiable Diseases, from 2011 to 2017. The chi-square test was used to assess the statistical significance of the differences between the proportions in the comparison between genders. Proportion ratios for the most frequent types of violence were estimated according to selected variables. RESULTS: The notifications came from 75.4% of all the Brazilian municipalities. Physical violence predominated among males, aged 15-19 years. Psychological violence was predominant among females, between 10 and 14 years old, when perpetrated repeatedly at home by family aggressors. Sexual violence prevailed among females, aged 10 to 14 years old, in the indigenous, black and yellow races/colors, when perpetrated repeatedly at home. Negligence was more common among males, between 10 and 14 years old, when perpetrated repeatedly by family aggressors. CONCLUSIONS: Sexual violence occurred predominantly against females and generated significant negative impacts on mental, physical, sexual and reproductive health. Community violence, perpetrated with sharp objects and firearms, were prominent among males and are important risk factors for male over-mortality. Because the problems are complex, addressing them requires intersectoral actions.

A Acessibilidade da Atenção Básica no Brasil na avaliação dos usuários / Primary Health Care accessibility in Brazil: Users evaluation

Resumo Introdução Embora sejam percebidos avanços quanto à ampliação na cobertura da Atenção Básica no Brasil, o acesso ou a acessibilidade do usuário na utilização desses serviços ainda é considerado como desafio. Objetivo Descrever as dimensões da acessibilidade na atenção básica na avaliação dos usuários que participaram da avaliação externa do Programa Nacional de Melhoria do Acesso e da Qualidade na Atenção Básica, em 2012, nas macrorregiões do país. Método Trata-se de um estudo descritivo, transversal. Foram utilizados os dados do módulo III, que trata da entrevista com os usuários na Unidade Básica de Saúde (UBS), especificamente do componente referente à utilização dos serviços de saúde. Participaram 65.391 usuários de 3.944 municípios. Resultados Verificou-se que tanto a acessibilidade geográfica como a organizacional estão mais comprometidas nas regiões Norte e Nordeste. Quanto às barreiras de acessibilidade organizacional, constaram-se a forma de agendamento das consultas, a falta de possibilidade de escolha dos profissionais e os horários de atendimento restritos. Ademais, observou-se que boa parte dos usuários não consegue resolver as urgências na Unidade Básica de Saúde. Conclusão Há avanços no alcance da acessibilidade, todavia nas regiões Norte e Nordeste é preciso maiores investimentos para melhorar, sobretudo, a acessibilidade organizacional.

Abstract Background Although advances are perceived in terms of expanding the coverage of Primary Care in Brazil, patient access or accessibility when using these services is still considered a challenge. Objective This work aimed to describe some dimensions of accessibility in primary Health Care in Brazil of the users' evaluation who participate of the National Program for improving access and quality in primary health care, in 2012 in all the regions of the country. Method It is a descriptive, cross-sectional study. It was used the data of the III module which collect with interview with users, data specifically of the component for the use of health services. 65.391 users of 3.944 municipalities participated of this study. Results It was found problems with the geographical and organizational accessibility in the north and northeast regions. The organizational barriers were more evident in the scheduling consultations, in the lack of choice of professionals and the restricted opening hours. In addition, it was observed that most users cannot solve the emergency in the basic health unity. Conclusion There was progress in the accessibility, on the other hand in the North and Northeast regions needs greater investments to improve the organizational accessibility.

Princípio da não discriminação e não estigmatização: reflexões sobre hanseníase / The principle of non-discrimination and non-stigmatization: reflections on leprosy / Principio de la no discriminación y de la no estigmatización: reflexiones sobre la lepra

Resumo Este artigo baseia-se no artigo 11 da Declaração Universal sobre Bioética e Direitos Humanos , que trata do princípio de não discriminação e não estigmatização. O texto discorre sobre os conceitos de discriminação, estigma e violência estrutural, pensando-os no caso específico da hanseníase, sob a perspectiva da bioética e dos direitos humanos. A pesquisa considera ainda o fato de que o Brasil é o segundo país mais afetado pela doença. Como conclusão, destaca-se a importância da referida declaração como instrumento teórico-prático para enfrentar a exclusão social de pessoas nessa situação.

Abstract This article is based on Article 11 of the Universal Declaration on Bioethics and Human Rights, which addresses the principle of non-discrimination and non-stigmatization. The paper discusses the concepts of discrimination, stigma and structural violence, analyzing the specific case of leprosy from the viewpoint of bioethics and human rights. The research also considers the fact that Brazil is the second country most affected by the disease. The conclusion stresses the importance of this declaration as a theoretical and practical instrument to address the social exclusion of people in this situation.

Resumen Este artículo se basa en el artículo 11 de la Declaración Universal sobre la Bioética y los Derechos Humanos , que trata del principio de la no discriminación y no estigmatización. El texto analiza los conceptos de discriminación, estigma y violencia estructural, teniéndolos en cuenta por el caso específico de la lepra, bajo la perspectiva de la bioética y los derechos humanos. La investigación también considera el hecho de que Brasil es el segundo país más afectado por la enfermedad. Como conclusión, se destaca la importancia de esta declaración como instrumento teórico-práctico para abordar la exclusión social de las personas en esta situación.

Violências contra adolescentes: análise das notificações realizadas no setor saúde, Brasil, 2011-2017 / Violence against adolescents: analysis of health sector notifications, Brazil, 2011-2017

RESUMO: Introdução: A violência sofrida na adolescência resulta em sérios prejuízos e sofrimento para a sociedade. Este estudo objetivou caracterizar o perfil das violências, das vítimas e dos prováveis autores das violências perpetradas contra adolescentes, bem como descrever o percentual de municípios notificantes por unidade da Federação. Métodos: Estudo transversal, realizado com dados de notificação de violência contra adolescentes do Sistema de Informação de Agravos de Notificação referentes ao período de 2011 a 2017. A significância estatística das diferenças entre as proporções na comparação entre sexos foi testada com o qui-quadrado. Estimaram-se razões de proporção para os tipos de violência mais frequentes segundo variáveis selecionadas. Resultados: As notificações foram procedentes de 75,4% dos municípios brasileiros. A violência física predominou no sexo masculino, na idade de 15 a 19 anos. A violência psicológica predominou no sexo feminino, entre 10 e 14 anos, quando praticada de forma repetitiva, no domicílio, por agressores familiares. A violência sexual prevaleceu no sexo feminino, entre 10 e 14 anos, nas raças/cores indígena, negra e amarela, quando perpetrada de forma repetitiva, no domicílio. A negligência predominou no sexo masculino, entre 10 e 14 anos, quando praticada de forma repetitiva, por agressores familiares. Conclusões: Violências sexuais ocorreram preponderantemente no sexo feminino e geram consideráveis impactos negativos à saúde mental, física, sexual e reprodutiva. Violências comunitárias perpetradas com objetos perfurocortantes e arma de fogo tiveram destaque no sexo masculino e são fatores de risco significativos para a sobremortalidade masculina. Como os problemas são complexos, demandam atuação intersetorial para seu enfrentamento.

ABSTRACT: Introduction: Violence experienced in adolescence results in serious damage and suffering to society. This study aims to characterize the profile of violence victims and likely perpetrators of violence against adolescents, as well as to describe the percentage of notifying municipalities according to the federation unit. Methods: Cross-sectional study conducted with data on notification of violence against adolescents from the Information System for Notifiable Diseases, from 2011 to 2017. The chi-square test was used to assess the statistical significance of the differences between the proportions in the comparison between genders. Proportion ratios for the most frequent types of violence were estimated according to selected variables. Results: The notifications came from 75.4% of all the Brazilian municipalities. Physical violence predominated among males, aged 15-19 years. Psychological violence was predominant among females, between 10 and 14 years old, when perpetrated repeatedly at home by family aggressors. Sexual violence prevailed among females, aged 10 to 14 years old, in the indigenous, black and yellow races/colors, when perpetrated repeatedly at home. Negligence was more common among males, between 10 and 14 years old, when perpetrated repeatedly by family aggressors. Conclusions: Sexual violence occurred predominantly against females and generated significant negative impacts on mental, physical, sexual and reproductive health. Community violence, perpetrated with sharp objects and firearms, were prominent among males and are important risk factors for male over-mortality. Because the problems are complex, addressing them requires intersectoral actions.