Evaluation of the healthcare network for persons with arterial hypertension: study of a health district

Abstract:

In the context of public health policies, healthcare network is a strategy that aims to promote people’s equitable access to services and to reduce fragmentation. The aim of this study was to evaluate the degree of development of components in a healthcare network for hypertension. This was an ex-ante, cross-sectional evaluative study focused on the implementation of a healthcare network for persons with chronic diseases, applying a questionnaire to 17 health administrators from the municipalities (counties) comprising the largest health district in Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil. The questionnaire consisted of 65 questions covering the five components: Primary Health Care; Specialized Care; Support Systems; Logistics Systems; and Governance. The study conducted descriptive statistical tests and the classification of services provided in each component using the Friedman test, followed by the Student-Newman-Keuls post hoc test, with significance set at 5%. The results were distributed in quartiles and presented in boxplot graphs. Correlations were established between the dimensions. According to the findings, the components are in an intermediate degree of implementation, with low development of the items needed for establishing networks. Primary Health Care does not coordinate the care, and the Specialized Care and Governance components showed the worst results. The findings indicate predominance of installed services that still fall short of the necessary practices for establishing healthcare networks, which can compromise their implementation.

Keywords:
Health Policy; Health Services; Health Evaluation; Hypertension