Teledentistry and the Unified Health System: An Important Tool for the Resumption of Primary Health Care in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract This paper describes the possibilities of using Teledentistry to expand and qualify health care in oral health care networks. WHO already recommended to its member countries, even before the pandemic, Telehealth as a strategy to improve the quality of services, especially in universal systems, as the Unified Health System (SUS). Teledentistry opens opportunities for oral health to resume the provision of various services, remotely, such as: 1) Tracking, active search, monitoring of priority users, those at risk and with systemic problems, suspicions of COVID-19 and contacts, through Telemonitation; 2) Initial listening, individual or collective educational activities, through Teleorientation; 3) Discussion of clinical cases for the definition of the opportunity / need for operative procedures, matrix support, sharing, solution of doubts among professionals and between these and teaching and research institutions, by Teleconsulting, among others. In addition to a review of Teledentistry in the context of the pandemic, we conceptualized the terms used and possibilities offered to SUS professionals, in addition to specifying the possible protocols for recording these activities to provide safe data for their monitoring and evaluation. Besides, we bring a brief discussion with promising experiences, carried out in the pre- and trans-pandemic contexts, which can be important strategies for the resumption of oral health in the post-pandemic scenario.

Teledentistry and the Unified Health System: an important tool for the resumption of Primary Health Care in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic / Teleodontologia e SUS: uma importante ferramenta para a retomada da Atenção Primária à Saúde no contexto da pandemia de COVID-19

This "short communication" describes the possibilities of using Teleodontology to expand and qualify health care in oral health care networks. WHO already recommended to its member countries, including Brazil, even before the pandemic, the use of Telehealth as a strategy to improve the quality of its services, especially in the context of universal health systems, as the Unified Health System In the current context, Teleodontology opens opportunities for oral health to resume the offer of various services, remotely, such as: 1. tracking, active search, monitoring users of priority groups, at risk and with systemic problems, monitoring of suspected cases of COVID-19 and its contacts, via telemonitoration; 2. initial listening, individual and collective educational activities, among others, through teleorientation; 3. discussion of clinical cases to define the opportune moment to perform operative procedures among professionals of different levels of care, matrix support, sharing and soluting doubts between professionals or between professionals and teaching and research institutions, through teleconsulting, among others . In addition to a literature review on Teleodontology in the context of the pandemic, an important contribution of this "short communication" is the conceptualization of the terms used and possibilities they offer to SUS professionals, in addition to specifying the possible protocols for recording these activities, in order to provide service managers with secure data for monitoring and evaluating the work process. In addition, we bring a brief discussion with some promising experiences, carried out in the pre- and trans-pandemic context, which can consolidate themselves as important strategies for the resumption of oral health in the post-pandemic scenario.

Este "short communication" descreve as possibilidades de utilização da Teleodontologia para ampliação e qualificação do cuidado em saúde nas redes de atenção à saúde bucal. A OMS já recomendava aos seus países membros, mesmo antes da pandemia, o Telessaúde como estratégia para melhorar a qualidade dos serviços, especialmente nos sistemas universais, como é o caso do Sistema Único de Saúde. A Teleodontologia abre oportunidades para que a saúde bucal retome a oferta de diversos serviços, de forma remota, como: 1. rastreamento, busca ativa, monitoramento de usuários prioritários, de risco e com problemas sistêmicos, de suspeitas de COVID-19 e contactantes, através do Telemonitamento; 2. escuta inicial, atividades educativas individuais ou coletivas, através da Teleorientação; 3. discussão de casos clínicos para a definição da oportunidade/necessidade de procedimentos operatórios, matriciamento, compartilhamento, solução de dúvidas entre profissionais e entre estes e instituições de ensino e pesquisa, por Teleconsultorias, entre outros. Além de uma revisão sobre a Teleodontologia no contexto da pandemia, conceituamos os termos utilizados e possibilidades que oferecem aos profissionais do SUS, além de especificar os protocolos possíveis para registro dessas atividades, a fim de fornecer dados seguros para seu monitoramento e avaliação. Ademais, trazemos uma breve discussão com experiências promissoras, realizadas nos contextos pré e trans pandemia, que podem ser importantes estratégias para a retomada da saúde bucal no cenário pós pandemia.