RESUMOIntrodução: Este estudo situa-se no escopo da educação permanente em saúde, ferramenta que tem sido fundamental para provocar mudanças nas práticas do trabalho em saúde. Neste cenário, a prática da atenção primária à saúde, em especial a saúde da família, tem sido utilizada para efetivar a organização dos serviços de saúde no Brasil. Objetivo: Analisar a contribuição de um curso de especialização em Saúde da Família, nas modalidades presencial e à distância, para a prática de profissionais de saúde no estado do Rio Grande do Sul. Métodos: Trata-se de um estudo qualitativo, realizado no contexto de um curso de especialização em Saúde da Família, ofertado por duas instituições em Porto Alegre, utilizando-se um questionário on-line e um grupo focal. Resultados: Os participantes do estudo foram 64 profissionais de saúde (médicos, enfermeiros e odontólogos) que já atuavam na atenção primária à saúde e integraram as turmas nas modalidades presencial e à distância. Foram realizados dois grupos focais (durante o início e ao final do curso), além de terem sido analisadas as percepções dos profissionais em relação à contribuição do curso na prática profissional. Conclusão: O curso provocou mudanças, tais como reorganização do processo de trabalho da equipe, implementação de atividades coletivas e acolhimento à demanda espontânea, além de maior compreensão do processo de trabalho.Palavras-chave: educação em saúde; atenção primária à saúde; saúde da família. ABSTRACTIntroduction: This study lies within the scope of health permanent education, a tool that has been essential in causing changes in health work practices. In this scenario, the practice of primary health care, especially family health, has been used to carry out the organization of health services in Brazil. Objective: To analyze the contribution of a specialization course in Family Health, in present and distant modes, to the practice of health professionals in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Methods: This is a qualitative study conducted in the context of a specialization course in Family Health that is offered by two institutions in Porto Alegre, using an online questionnaire and a focal group. Results: Study participants were 64 health professionals (physicians, nurses and dentists) that were already working in primary health care and formed the classes in present and distant modes. Two focal groups were conducted (during the beginning and by the end of the course), and professionals' perceptions regarding the contribution of the course to the professional practice was analyzed. Conclusion: The course caused some changes, such as reorganization of teamwork process, implementation of collective activities and reception to spontaneous demand, as well as better understanding of the work process.

O objetivo desse estudo foi descrever o processo de criação dos conteúdos do Curso de Especialização em Saúde da Família (EspSF) promovido pela UNA-SUS/UFCSPA, modalidade a distância, de acordo com características de cada região onde o curso é ofertado. Parte do curso de EspSF é baseada na aprendizagem a partir de casos clínicos complexos. Alguns casos clínicos do curso foram personalizados de acordo com a região do país (norte, nordeste ou sul) onde o profissional atua, considerando características epidemiológicas e socioculturais de cada região. Com a adaptação de 12 casos complexos às realidades dos estados do Pará e de Sergipe, o curso, que foi inicialmente pensado a partir de características do estado do Rio Grande do Sul, pode ser oferecido aos referidos estados, mantendo a sua característica de fidedignidade às situações, as quais o profissional está exposto no seu cotidiano.

This study evaluates the effectiveness of an 18-month-long course in Family Health. The course was offered in two modalities, distance education and face-to-face learning. Dependent variables were as follows: self-regulation of learning, procrastination, the perception of self-efficacy, and academic performance. The course was attended by 27 health professionals (i.e., physicians, nurses, and dentists) working in the Brazilian Unified Health System. The investigation followed a quasi-experimental design. Participants in the two modalities achieved similar academic performance; and globally no statistically significant differences were found regarding the study variables. Findings, notwithstanding their importance for professional training in health, are preliminary and further research is needed on the effectiveness of training modalities distance education and face-to-face learning (e.g., focus groups, interviews, online monitoring). The educational implications of this study are discussed and analyzed considering specificities and differences of each modality.

The Health and Education Ministries of Brazil launched the Health in School Program (Programa Saúde na Escola - PSE) in 2007. The purpose of the PSE is two-fold: articulate the actions of the education and health systems to identify risk factors and prevent them; and promote health education in the public elementary school system. In the health field, the self-regulation (SR) construct can contribute to the understanding of life habits which can affect the improvement of individuals' health. This research aims to present a program that promotes SR in health (SRH). This program (PSRH) includes topics on healthy eating and oral health from the PSE; it is grounded on the social cognitive framework and uses story tools to train 5th grade Brazilian students in SRH. The study consists of two phases. In Phase 1, teachers and health professionals participated in a training program on SRH, and in Phase 2, they will be expected to conduct an intervention in class to promote SRH. The participants were randomly assigned into three groups: the Condition I group followed the PSE program, the Condition II group followed the PSRH (i.e., PSE plus the SRH program), and the control group (CG) did not enroll in either of the health promotion programs. For the baseline of the study, the following measures and instruments were applied: Body Mass Index (BMI), Simplified Oral Hygiene Index (OHI-S), Previous Day Food Questionnaire (PFDQ), and Declarative Knowledge for Health Instrument. Data indicated that the majority are eutrophic children, but preliminary outcomes showed high percentages of children that are overweight, obese and severely obese. Moreover, participants in all groups reported high consumption of ultraprocessed foods (e.g., soft drinks, artificial juices, and candies). Oral health data from the CI and CII groups showed a prevalence of regular oral hygiene, while the CG presented good oral hygiene. The implementation of both PSE and PSRH are expected to help reduce health problems in school, as well as the public expenditures with children's health (e.g., Obesity and oral diseases).