Resumo: As Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação (TIC) - meios para tratar informação e agilizar comunicação - contribuem para o cuidado. Este artigo descreve a incorporação de TIC na atenção básica e sua associação com a qualidade, utilizando Programa Nacional de Melhoria do Acesso e da Qualidade da Atenção Básica (PMAQ). É um estudo transversal. O universo englobou 17.053 equipes. Criou-se o Índice de Incorporação de Tecnologias de Informação e Comunicação (ITIC) englobando: infraestrutura, sistemas e utilização de informação. Para as associações, realizou-se análise de regressão. Somente 13,5% das equipes possuem grau alto de TIC. É na utilização da informação que se observou a maior força de associação. As TIC contribuem para a melhoria da qualidade da atenção básica.

ObjectiveTo assess factors associated with patients’ satisfaction with the treatment by dentists in primary health care (PHC) in Brazil.Materials and methodsThe dataset was part of a nationwide cross-sectional survey for evaluating PHC teams conducted by the Brazilian Ministry of Health. Patients from each of 16,202 oral health teams were interviewed. In addition to sociodemographic information, the questionnaire included information about patient experience domains: access and booking of dental appointments, bonding and accountability, welcoming of the patient, and their perception of dental facilities.Statistical analysisThe dependent variable was the answer to the question ‘From 0 to 10, how would you grade your satisfaction with treatment received from the dentist?’ Negative binomial regression models were used to estimate the unadjusted and adjusted rate ratios and corresponding 95% confidence interval.ResultsThe mean patient satisfaction was 9.4 (±2.3). Higher patient satisfaction with PHC was associated with lower education and the patient’s perception of the clinic conditions. Moreover, higher satisfaction was associated with positive reception and hospitality, enough time for treatment, and instructions that met patients’ needs. Lower satisfaction with PHC was associated with patients who have jobs compared to those who do not work.ConclusionPatient satisfaction is increased with friendly and understanding PHC staff. Moreover, meeting patient expectations by taking time to understand the needs and giving the right instructions is associated with higher satisfaction.

Objective: To describe the primary care actions performed by oral health teams (OHTs) that participated in a large national survey led by the Ministry of Health in 2012. Methods: A total of 12,403 dentists from OHTs completed a set of survey questions (response rate = 85.01%) on the organization of care, basic dental procedures and oral health surveillance actions of OHTs. Descriptive and hierarchical cluster analyses were developed. Results: The majority of OHTs (85.2%) reported that they performed “patient welcoming”. The delivery of services was based on a patient’s identified disease risk (83.1%), and continuity of care was ensured by 85.9% of OHTs. Individual preventive, restorative and surgical procedures were performed by the majority of the teams; however, screening for oral cancer and construction of dental prostheses/dentures occurred less frequently. Cluster 1 was composed of OHTs with the lowest proportion of oral healthcare actions related to oral cancer and dental prostheses/dentures, and the Southeastern and Southern regions had higher proportions of OHTs from cluster 2. Conclusions: OHTs adhere to some of the principles of primary care organizations; however, the teams perform fewer actions related to oral cancer treatment and rehabilitation with complete dentures. The geographical distribution of the clusters was unequal in Brazil.

The aim of this study was to examine the procedures of primary dental health care performed by oral health teams (OHTs) adhering to the second cycle of the ‘National Programme for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care’ (PMAQ-AB) in Brazil. A cross-sectional descriptive analysis was performed, across 23 dental procedures comprising preventive, restorative/prosthetic, surgical, endodontic and oral cancer monitoring. Descriptive analysis shows that most of the oral health teams carry out basic dental procedures. However, most of the time, they do not keep adequate records of suspected cases of oral cancer, diagnosis tests or follow-ups, and do not perform dental prosthetic procedures. Data also showed disparities in the average number of procedures performed in each Brazilian geographical region in 2013–2014, ranging from 13.9 in the northern to 16.5 in the southern and south-eastern regions, reinforcing the great social disparities between them. Brazilian regions with the highest volume of dental need deliver the lowest number of dental procedures. The need to tackle inequalities and further shape the supply of appropriate primary health care (PHC) is evident.

Although the analyzed items are insufficient to determine the performance of OHTs, the items related to prosthesis and oral cancer tend to discriminate high-performing OHTs from other OHTs.