Trends in performance indicators and production monitoring in Specialized Dental Clinics in Brazil

Abstract

This study aimed to assess time trends in production and performance indicators in secondary dental care services in the Brazilian Unified National Health System (SUS) from 2008 to 2018. A time series study was conducted, based on production data from the Specialized Dental Clinics (CEOs in Portuguese) obtained from the Ambulatory Information System of the SUS. The monitoring indicator was assessed as the proportion of clinics that met the monthly target set for each specialty (primary care, endodontics, surgery, periodontics). Dental services' performance was defined as poor for those that met only one or no targets in the four dental specialties. The time series were analyzed by the decomposition method, considering the components trend, seasonal variation, and random variation. All the analyses were performed for Brazil as a whole and for each of the country's five major geographic regions. A decline was seen in Brazil as a whole in the proportion of clinics that met the primary care targets. There were upward trends in the proportion of compliance with the targets for surgery and periodontics in Brazil as a whole. Important differences were seen between the regions of Brazil in the proportion of compliance with the targets, with the worst performance for the clinics in the North and Northeast regions. Time trends showed an improvement in the services for Brazil as a whole, while emphasizing the importance of assessing the country's regions and the need for constant monitoring of these indicators.