COMPETENCIES OF AIDES AND TECHNICIANS IN ORAL HEALTH AND THE TIES WITH THE NATIONAL HEALTH SYSTEM

Abstract The study aimed to describe the sociodemographic, labor, and training profile of aides and technicians in oral health working in the state of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Information reported by 255 oral health aides and technicians who attended the Rio Grande do Sul Dental Congress in 2010 and 2012 was analyzed. The survey used a written, structured, and self-administered questionnaire, organized into three thematic blocks under these categories: identification (gender, age, marital status, state/city, income, license, ties and board/labor union registration), training (establishment, duration, incentive/difficulties in keeping updated/training) and work process (professional competencies and attributions). The results showed that work process differences between oral health aides and technicians, as determined by their working ties with the National Health System, were mostly in the health promotion and prevention competency attributions. It was also found that the attributions of the working environment organization and clinical care competencies in oral health provide greater identity to the work of these professionals, regardless of their ties. The study points to the overlapping of skills and duties performed by oral health aides and technicians.