Abstract
This cross-sectional study aims to describe the primary dental care procedures performed by Oral Health Teams (OHTs), adhering to the third cycle of the "National Program for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care" (PMAQ-AB) in Brazil. A descriptive analysis was performed through 26 dental procedures, including spontaneous, preventive, restorative/prosthetic and surgical procedures, and actions of cancer monitoring. Each conducted procedure assigned a score to the OHT, the final score being the sum of the number of procedures performed by the OHTs. These scores were then compared among the geographic regions of the country. Most OHTs perform basic dental procedures, such as supragingival scaling, root planning and coronal polishing (98.1%), composite filling (99.0%), and permanent tooth extraction (98.6%). The frequency related to dental prosthesis and monitoring of oral cancer decreased. Only 12.9% of the OHTs carries out biopsies, 30.9% monitor patients undergoing biopsy, 15.1% carry out impression for prostheses, and 13.6% carry out prostheses' installation. The scores reveal that OHT's performed, on average, 19.45 (±3.16) dental procedures. The OHTs in the South, Southeast, and Northeast had a higher number of primary dental procedures, while the teams in the North and Midwest performed, on average, fewer procedures. The Brazilian regions with the highest dental need have the lowest number of dental procedures. It is necessary to increase the range of procedures offered by OHT and reduce regional inequalities, adapting to the needs of the population in order to achieve comprehensive oral health.
Highlights
Primary Health Care (PHC) in Brazil is considered the entry point for the user of the Brazilian National Health System (SUS in Portuguese)
The present study aims to describe the procedures of primary dental health care performed by Oral Health Teams (OHTs) that adhered to the 3rd cycle of the PMAQ-AB among Brazilian regions
The descriptive analysis showed that 98% of OHTs guarantee the scheduling of appointments and the spontaneous meeting of demand
Summary
Primary Health Care (PHC) in Brazil is considered the entry point for the user of the Brazilian National Health System (SUS in Portuguese). The expansion of access to oral health has revealed the need to evaluate services in order to improve the quality of care provided to the population. The PMAQ-AB has the aim to increase access and improve the quality of health care, providing a national, regional, and local quality standard This program is the largest health service evaluation program ever instituted in the country [8]. The evaluation of the 3rd cycle may indicate if there were advances in the provision of PHC procedures in oral health and changes in the performance of the OHTs, providing data for the improvement and development of services. The present study aims to describe the procedures of primary dental health care performed by OHTs that adhered to the 3rd cycle of the PMAQ-AB among Brazilian regions. The null hypothesis of this study is that there is no difference in the PHC procedures performed by OHT’s among the five Brazilian regions
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