Oral health work process in Primary Health Care: intermunicipal inequalities highlighted by the PMAQ-AB

desigualdades intermunicipales evidenciadas por el PMAQ-AB

Abstract

The objective of this exploratory study was to identify inequalities in the organization of the work process of Oral Health Teams in the Family Health Strategy,  comparing municipalities of the Paraná State, Brazil,  regarding social, economic and demographic  conditions. We used secondary data obtained in the  external evaluation stage of the National Program of  Access and Quality Improvement in Primary Health  Care (PMAQ-AB), referring to the certification  standards for access, quality, and organization of the  work process of the teams. We observed wide participation of the  municipalities in the program, with predominance of  family health teams with oral health. The results  showinequalities, unfavorable to the smaller and  poorer municipalities, which reveals the need to  understand the role of management as a supporter  of the Oral Health Teams, favoring the rescue of skills  and abilities necessary for the good governance of  the clinic and of care in PHC .There is evidence of the  need for management qualification, with federal and  state support, mainly to smaller municipalities and  with a low response capacity of health systems. It is  important that regionalization be effective, and that  the oral health care network be organized in an  equitable way to include those municipalities.