ResumoObjetivo: traduzir e adaptar o PCATool versão usuários adultos ao contexto brasileiro e avaliar sua validade e fidedignidade. Métodos: Foi realizado um estudo transversal no qual foram entrevistados 2.404 usuários adultos residentes nas áreas adscritas da rede pública dos serviços de Atenção Primária à Saúde (APS) em Porto Alegre e usuários vinculados a um plano de autogestão. O processo de validação constituiu-se de tradução e tradução reversa, adaptação, validade de conteúdo, validade fatorial e fidedignidade. Resultados: Na análise fatorial, foram considerados 12 fatores que explicaram 50,83% da variação total. Assim, foram reconhecidos os seguintes atributos da APS: acesso -acessibilidade e utilização, longitudinalidade, coordenação -coordenação do cuidado e sistemas de informação, integralidade -serviços disponíveis e serviços prestados, enfoque familiar e orientação comunitária. Para a consistência interna, foi obtido alfa de Cronbach variando de 0,15 a 0,90. A estabilidade temporal não foi verificada para coordenação do cuidado (p<0,05), coordenação de sistema de informação (p<0,05) e integralidade de serviços prestados (p<0,05). Na razão êxito da escala, todos os componentes/atributos apresentaram valores próximos de 100%, à exceção do componente sistema de informação. Conclusões: os resultados indicaram que o PCATool-Brasil possui adequada validade e fidedignidade, podendo constituir-se em instrumento nacional de avaliação da APS para usuários adultos. AbstractObjective: to translate and adapt the PCATool version for adult users to the Brazilian context and assess its validity and reliability. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 2404 adult users living in areas covered from public services Primary Care in Porto Alegre, and users of a selfmanagement plan. We performed translation, reverse translation and adaptation of the instrument as well as its assessment in respect of content validity, factorial validity and reliability. Results: In the factor analysis were considered 12 factors that explained 50.83% of the total variation. In this way were recognized the attributes of Primary Care: access -accessibility and utilization; longitudinality; coordination -coordination of care and systems of information; comprehensiveness -services available and services provided; family orientation; and community orientation. In terms of internal consistency the values of Cronbach's alpha ranged from 0.15 to 0.90. The stability over time was not observed for coordination of care (p<0.05), coordination information of system (p<0.05) and comprehensiveness of services provided (p<0.05). The scaling success rate was close to 100% for all attributes, except to coordination of information system. Conclusions: the results indicated that the PCATool-Brazil has adequate validity and reliability, and it can act as a national instrument for the assessment of Primary Care from the perspective of adult users.

The case of TelessaúdeRS/UFRGS shows that even in the presence of structural limitations, telemedicine is potentially useful to improve the quality of care and streamline the flow between different levels of care.

ResumoA autopercepção da saúde baseia-se em critérios subjetivos e objetivos, sendo influenciada por fatores como sexo, idade, classe social e presença de doenças crônicas. Este trabalho descreve a autopercepção da saúde de usuários adultos adscritos à rede de Atenção Primária à Saúde (APS) de Porto Alegre (RS). Trata-se de um estudo transversal de base populacional, que avaliou a autopercepção da saúde por meio da pergunta "Comparado com alguém de sua idade e sexo, como você considera sua saúde?". As respostas foram agrupadas em "boa" ou "ruim". Variáveis sociodemográficas e econômicas, biológicas, de estilo de vida, do estado de saúde e da relação com o Serviço de Saúde ou médico referido foram utilizadas no modelo hierárquico conceitual para auxiliar na descrição da autopercepção de saúde por meio de regressão de Poisson modificada. (RP: 1,19; IC: 1,27) aumentaram significativamente a probabilidade de o usuário avaliar sua saúde como boa. A autopercepção da saúde mostra-se influenciada por fatores biológicos, socioeconômicos e de vínculo com o Serviço. Cabe ressaltar que maior satisfação com Serviço de APS estava associada à melhor autopercepção de saúde, justificando a reorganização do Sistema Único de Saúde pela ampliação da rede de Serviços de APS, como a Estratégia Saúde da Família.

BackgroundMany Brazilian patients with complex diseases who are treated in tertiary referral clinics have been stable for long periods. The main needs of these patients involve monitoring of risk factors and review of drug prescriptions, which could be satisfactorily done in primary care facilities. The goal of this protocol is to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of telemedicine services to support the transition of patients with stable chronic coronary artery disease from the tertiary to the primary level of care.Methods/designWe designed a randomized non-inferiority protocol that will include 280 patients with stable coronary artery disease (for at least 12 months). Patients will be selected from the Ischemic Heart Disease Clinic in a tertiary care hospital in southern Brazil. Enrolled participants will be randomized into one of two groups: 12 months of follow-up at the same clinic; or 12 months of follow-up at a primary care facility with clinical support from a telemedicine platform including a toll-free line for physicians (intervention group). In the intervention group, decisions to refer patients to tertiary care during follow-up will be made jointly by primary physicians and medical teleconsultants. The groups will be compared in terms of the primary outcome—maintenance of baseline functional class 1 or 2 after 12 months. Secondary outcomes include control of risk factors and instability of the disease.DiscussionWe intend to determine the effectiveness of using telemedicine to qualify the transition of patients with chronic coronary disease from the tertiary to the primary level of care. This should facilitate the access of patients to the healthcare system, since care will be provided closer to their homes, and provide more opportunities for treatment of severe cases at tertiary care hospitals that are often overcrowded.Trial registrationClinicalTrials.gov # NCT02489565 – trial registration date May 13, 2015

OBJECTIVE To describe the process of cross-cultural adaptation of the Patient-Doctor Relationship Questionnaire (PDRQ-9), as well as compare the agreement between two different types of application.METHODS This is a cross-sectional study with 133 adult users of a Primary Health Service in Porto Alegre, State of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. The PDRQ-9 was answered by the participants as a self-administered questionnaire and in an interview. The instrument was also validated by interview, using data from 628 participants of the Mais Médicos Program Evaluation Research, which is a cross-sectional study with a systematic sample of Primary Care Services in all regions of Brazil. We evaluated the semantic, conceptual, and item equivalence, as well as factor analysis and reliability.RESULTS All items presented factor loading > 0.5 in the different methods of application and populations in the factor analysis. We found Cronbach’s alpha of 0.94 in the self-administered method. We found Cronbach’s alpha of 0.95 and 0.94 in the two different samples in the interview application. The use of PDRQ-9 with an interview or self-administered was considered equivalent.CONCLUSIONS The cross-cultural adaptation of the PDRQ-9 in Brazil replicated the factorial structure found in the original study, with high internal consistency. The instrument can be used as a new dimension in the evaluation of the quality of health care in clinical research, in the evaluation of services and public health, in health management, and in professional training. Further studies can evaluate other properties of the instrument, as well as its behavior in different populations and contexts.

Our challenge was to structure a telemedicine framework that is capable of expanding access to services and testing while increasing the quality of the services provided. In this report, we describe the development of a telemedicine project in Brazil and its impact on increasing access to specialist consultations, diagnostic testing, and specialized medical advice to physicians. WHO & WHEREIn early By December, 2016, more than 83,000 hotline teleconsultations had been provided, with user satisfaction rates close to 95%. Specialist consultation was rendered unnecessary in 2 out of every 3 cases discussed.The state of Rio Grande do Sul struggles with large waiting lists in various medical specialties. The wait time can in many cases exceed 3 years. We worked with the Rio Grande do Sul State Department of Health to improve the quality of specialist referrals through development of referral protocols and clinical discussion of waitlisted patients. This has been implemented for 13 medical specialties, with protocols developed for 147 health conditions. As a result, the backlog of specialty appointments was reduced from 190,000 to 68,000 in just 2 years (July 2014 to Dec 2016). We had no problem adding specialists because we created a new field of work for them within the project.We have also expanded our portfolio with telediagnosis and tele-education initiatives. Tele-education actions include the provision of health apps (230,000 downloads so far), distance learning (15,000 students), a YouTube channel, (more than 1 million views) and a website where all our services are centralized. In 2013, we added a telespirometry service, which has already provided 13,000 tests using 9 spirometers distributed across the state of Rio Grande do Sul, enough to cover 100% of the state population of 11 million. This alone has sharply reduced wait times for pulmonary medicine consults (See the Supplemental Appendix).Brazil's medical residency programs are expected to encourage residents to use our tools, which are also promoted through contact with coordinators and presentations at national congresses. In our university, all 140 medical students in their final year are required to make at least 2 teleconsultations in the 3 months of internship. LEARNINGThrough this project, we have learned that effective information and communication technologies can be extremely valuable in health care. Telehealth represents the future of primary health care, and there is no way back.

Background: Cancer ranks second as a cause of death in Brazil. Although preventive practices are part of the daily routine of primary healthcare (PHC) teams, organized screening programs are lacking. This study aimed to evaluate the adequacy of preventive interventions in the main cancer types, as defined by the Brazilian government. Methods: We analyzed cross-sectional data from a larger project conducted in 2016 with PHC service users and physicians from all over Brazil, interviewed by trained research staff. The sample was stratified by the number of PHC physicians per geographic region, who were eligible for inclusion if they had been working in the same PHC unit for at least one year. Twelve adult patients with at least two encounters were included per participating physician. Only the data from service users were analyzed in this study. We evaluated the questions about preventive practices and calculated the following indicators: coverage, focus, screening errors, and screening ratio. National guidelines and international evidence were used as a comparison parameter. Results: The study population consisted of 6160 service users. The data indicate that the recommendations for cervical, breast, and prostate cancer screening and for treatment of tobacco dependence are not adequately followed. Coverage for breast and cervical cancer screening presented an overutilization bias, with rates 50% and 9% above the expected, respectively. The screening focus was also inadequate: 24%, 47%, and 54% of the screening tests for the three cancer types were performed in individuals outside the recommended age range. 31% of smokers were not approached for treatment. Conclusion: These findings indicate that the Brazilian population has been subjected to inadequate and potentially iatrogenic interventions in PHC. New policies based on stricter criteria of adequacy and increased use of the concept of quaternary prevention may improve the effectiveness and equity of the health system.

ResumoA autopercepção da saúde baseia-se em critérios subjetivos e objetivos, sendo influenciada por fatores como sexo, idade, classe social e presença de doenças crônicas. Este trabalho descreve a autopercepção da saúde de usuários adultos adscritos à rede de Atenção Primária à Saúde (APS) de Porto Alegre (RS). Trata-se de um estudo transversal de base populacional, que avaliou a autopercepção da saúde por meio da pergunta "Comparado com alguém de sua idade e sexo, como você considera sua saúde?". As respostas foram agrupadas em "boa" ou "ruim". Variáveis sociodemográficas e econômicas, biológicas, de estilo de vida, do estado de saúde e da relação com o Serviço de Saúde ou médico referido foram utilizadas no modelo hierárquico conceitual para auxiliar na descrição da autopercepção de saúde por meio de regressão de Poisson modificada. (RP: 1,19; IC: 1,27) aumentaram significativamente a probabilidade de o usuário avaliar sua saúde como boa. A autopercepção da saúde mostra-se influenciada por fatores biológicos, socioeconômicos e de vínculo com o Serviço. Cabe ressaltar que maior satisfação com Serviço de APS estava associada à melhor autopercepção de saúde, justificando a reorganização do Sistema Único de Saúde pela ampliação da rede de Serviços de APS, como a Estratégia Saúde da Família.