[Internment for conditions suitable for primary healthcare in Sao Paulo state]

Internments suitable for Primary Healthcare constitute a new indicator used in some countries to indirectly measure the resolution capability of Primary Healthcare. The scope of this study is to present the panorama of the internments suitable for primary healthcare in Sao Paulo State. An ecological descriptive study was carried out for the period from 2000 to 2007. The data were generated by patient's county of residence and grouped by Regional Health Departments. The Information Systems of the Health Ministry and the population estimates of the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) were used to obtain the data of all patients. The internments suitable for primary healthcare in the state follow a tendency toward reduction suggesting a connection with the adoption of the Family Health Program. A reduction in internments for diabetes was detected and attention was drawn to the increase of internment for illnesses related to prenatal care and childbirth. In light of the recent publication of the Brazilian Diagnostics List, studies that analyze the statistics from it can be very useful for managers involved with primary care, and can serve as benchmarks for quality and contribute to assessment for the implementation of health policies in Brazil.