Training and Qualification of Health Professionals: Factors Associated to the Quality of Primary Care

ABSTRACT The changes wtinessed in health and education in the twentieth century influenced the work of health professionals, particularly those in primary health care, on a conceptual and practical level. This research investgiated the training and qualifications of professionals that work with the Family Health Strategy (FHS), and factors related to the quality of primary health care services in the northwest region of Goiânia. The research is classified as a cross-sectional study, conducted using interviews that included the application of the Primary Care Assessment Tool (PCATool). Ninety-two professionals from FHS teams participated in the study (48 physicians and 44 nurses). The data analysis involved methods such as the Mann-Whitney U test, chi-squared test, Fisher test and Poisson Regression. The results indicated significant differences (p<0.05) between the training profile and qualifications of doctors and nurses. Assessment of the primary health care attributes resulted in a general high score (6.7). It was concluded that the quality of the primary health care services can be correlated to doctors who work for a longer period of time in the same teams, as well as the perception of health professional training and qualifications in the northwest region of Goiânia.