The end of the cooperation government-academy in the National Program for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care in the Brazilian Nacional Health System

Abstract

This study analyzes the dissolution of the institutional cooperation, lasting approximately a decade, between the Ministry of Health and a set of academic institutions for the implementation of the National Program for Improving Access and Quality of Primary Care (PMAQ-AB) in the scope of the Brazilian Nacional Health System (SUS). This exploratory, qualitative research consists of a case study that uses assumptions of Historical Neoinstitutionalism to guide the analysis. Data were collected by documentary and bibliographic research and semi-structured interviews with key actors. From the content analysis, three analytical categories were evidenced: end of the PMAQ-AB - historical process, political-institutional context and actors; end of the institutional cooperation - government-academy interaction process; and actors’ perceptions about the end of institutional cooperation. The end of institutional cooperation happened in a context of change of government at the federal level, within a new political-institutional order of SUS and was influenced by historical factors and the practices of public managers and in the conduct of political processes. An inter-institutional government-academy exchange with a view to strengthening health management and supporting the institutional development of the SUS is a future expectation, considering the adversities imposed on the field of health and public education in Brazil today.