An evaluation of PMAQ-AB effects on hospitalization for conditions susceptible to Primary Care

Abstract

The aim of this article was to evaluate the effect of the National Program for Access and Quality Improvement of Primary Care (PMAQ-AB) on access and quality of primary care. Hospitalizations for conditions sensitive to primary care were used as a dependent variable and indirect indicator of quality and access to this level of care. The quantitative method of study was used, having as a unit of analysis all Brazilian municipalities. The study was divided into two phases: in the first one an exploratory descriptive time series analysis was performed on the Brazilian municipalities, covering the period from 2010 to 2014. And the second phase was characterized by evaluating the effect of the Program, during the same period, on access and quality of primary care, through the statistical regression technique with counting data. The results, analyzed by region, showed that the Program is having a significant effect on the quality and access of primary care, especially in the Northeast. This article appears as an important informative about health policies in Brazil and also as a means of instructing managers and the various actors involved in the development and discussion of one of the main programs of primary care.