A cross-sectional survey was conducted on a sample of 1,061 students to determine the epidemiological profile of drug abuse among elementary and high school students in the State public school system in Greater Metropolitan Cuiaba, Mato Grosso, Brazil, in 1995. Results showed drug abuse among both male and female students (27. 2% and 24.1%, respectively). Drug abuse was more common in students over 18 years of age (27.1%), with grade/age discrepancies (70.7%), with higher classroom absenteeism (44.6%), and with higher social economic levels (A+B=34.5%). The most frequently abused drugs among male students were alcohol (81.8%), solvents (18.6%), and marijuana (6.0%). Early alcohol abuse was also common (12.1 +/-3.6 years). In addition to alcohol (78.6%) and tobacco (29.0%), the substances most commonly consumed by students were solvents (14.9%), anxiolytics (6. 0%), and amphetamines (4.8%). The 1995 epidemiological profile of drug abuse among elementary and high school students in the State public school system in Cuiaba was similar data from nationwide surveys conducted in 1987, 1989, and 1993.

NOTA RESEARCH NOTE Hacia una estrategia de garantía de calidad: satisfacción en la utilización de los servicios médicos Towards a strategy for quality assurance: satisfaction in the utilization of medical care

(r= -0,31)

El presente estudio tiene por objetivo conocer las repercusiones de la prematurez en el crecimiento y desarrollo del niño, para lo cual se hace un seguimiento de niños nacidos en hospitales de la Zona Metropolitana de Guadalajara, Jalisco, México, de los más representativos del Sistema de Atención Médica en México. Estos niños fueron seguidos con evaluaciones semestrales, tanto en lo que se refiere al estado nutricional (crecimiento), como al desarrollo (Prueba Selectiva de Denver). El análisis de los resultados se realiza con la consideración de las clases sociales como categorías determinantes, para ubicar posteriormente a la prematurez como variable dependiente. Los resultados sugieren que tanto la prematurez como las clases sociales son aspectos que, en Salud Pública, deben ser considerados en el momento de planificar las acciones de atención a la salud.

This paper analyzes the problem of quality of medical care and its evolution in various health service institutions. It concludes that quality strategies for countries like Mexico should be of the decentralized/participant type, and that all quality programs in medical care should include five fundamental elements: evaluation, monitoring, design, development, and organizational change.