Evaluation of pharmaceutical assistance in public primary care in Brasília, Brazil

Bibliographic Data

ID9259738
AuthorsJaneth De Oliveira Silva Naves (0000-0003-4793-2836, Universidade de Brasília), Lynn D Silver (0000-0002-2680-7393, Universidade de Brasília)
Year2005
Volume39
Issue2
Pages223-230
Publication date2005-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueRevista de Saúde Pública (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0034-8910 • E-ISSN: 0034-8910
PublisherFapUNIFESP (SciELO) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1590/s0034-89102005000200013
PMID15895142
OpenAlexW2045784885
SCIELO_PIDS0034-89102005000200013
LanguageEN
Citations received27
References cited3

OBJECTIVE: Pharmaceutical assistance is essential in health care and a right of citizens according to Brazilian law and drug policies. The study purpose was to evaluate aspects of pharmaceutical assistance in public primary health care. METHODS: A cross-sectional study using WHO drug indicators was carried out in Brasília in 2001. From a random sample of 15 out of 62 centers thirty exiting patients per center were interviewed. RESULTS: Only 18.7% of the patients fully understood the prescription, 56.3% could read it, 61.2% of the prescribed drugs were actually dispensed, and mean duration of pharmaceutical dispensing was 53.2 seconds. Each visit lasted on average 9.4 minutes. Of prescribed and non-dispensed drugs, 85.3% and 60.6% were on the local essential drug list (EDL) respectively. On average 83.2% of 40 essential drugs were in stock, and only two centers had a pharmacist in charge of the pharmacy. The mean number of drugs per prescription was 2.3, 85.3% of prescribed drugs were on the EDL, 73.2% were prescribed using the generic denomination, 26.4% included antibiotics and 7.5% were injectables. The most prescribed groups were: cardiovascular drugs (26.8%), anti-infective drugs (13.1%), analgesics (8.9%), anti-asthmatic drugs (5.8%), anti-diabetic drugs (5.3%), psychoactive drugs (3.7%), and combination drugs (2.7%). CONCLUSIONS: Essential drugs were only moderately available almost 30 years after the first Brazilian EDL was formulated. While physician use of essential drugs and generic names was fairly high, efficiency was impaired by the poor quality of pharmaceutical care, resulting in very low patient understanding and insufficient guarantee of supply, particularly for chronic diseases

Drug · Environmental health · Essential drugs · Essential medicines · Family medicine · Health services · Medical prescription · Pharmaceutical care · Pharmacist · Population · Primary health care · Public health · Antibiotic Use and Resistance · Medicine · Nursing · Pharmaceutical Economics and Policy · Pharmacology · Pharmacy · Public Health in Brazil

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