A redução do absenteísmo de usuários em consultas de especialidades no SUS: a experiência de um instituto de referência no Rio de Janeiro

Abstract

The absenteeism of users to scheduled appointments is pointed out as one of the main problems faced in the management of the Unified Health System at all levels of care. The object of the research was the outpatient absenteeism in specialty appointments in the SUS from the perspective of access and use of services, from the experience of the Social Service Intervention Project in cases of absenteeism in subsequent appointments, which occurred in the period from 2018 to 2020, at the Luiz Capriglione State Institute of Diabetes and Endocrinology (IEDE). The main objective of the study was to propose strategies for reducing user absenteeism in subsequent appointments in specialized public health units. The aim was to contribute to the reflection on the dimension of access and user absenteeism in specialized public health units, by analyzing the problem situation and intervening in the health facility. Through descriptive exploratory research, the description and analysis of the access flow to the IEDE and description of the Intervention Project were carried out, as well as the presentation and discussion of its results. The results of the present study confirmed the intrinsic relationship between the opportunity of access and the realization of the use of health services with user absenteeism. The causes presented by users regarding the situation of absenteeism were identified as barriers to accessing services, in which their aspects go beyond the individual question and encompass the institution and public policies, including health policies, such as work and the lack of financial resources, whose solution to these problems depends mainly on intersectoral public policies and institutional reorganization. In the end, we proposed strategies to reduce user absenteeism in subsequent visits to the specialized public health unit.