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The integration of non-conventional therapies (NCT) into health policies and health services delivery is a worldwide trend and might have a role in achieving Universal Health Coverage. WHO has encouraged countries to integrate NCT into health service delivery and to increase the interest and utilization by consumers. Following two resolutions by the European Parliament and by the Council of Europe, in the late 1990s, recommending the recognition of NCT and calling for EU legislation on non-conventional forms of medicine, Portugal initiated, in 2003, its path towards regulation of NCT. We analyze this process and discuss its implications and impacts in terms of health policies, health services delivery and overall health workforce. ; publishersversion ; published

BACKGROUND: The integration of non-conventional therapies (NCT) into health policies and health services delivery is a worldwide trend and might have a role in achieving Universal Health Coverage. WHO has encouraged countries to integrate NCT into health service delivery and to increase the interest and utilization by consumers. Following two resolutions by the European Parliament and by the Council of Europe, in the late 1990s, recommending the recognition of NCT and calling for EU legislation on non-conventional forms of medicine, Portugal initiated, in 2003, its path towards regulation of NCT. We analyze this process and discuss its implications and impacts in terms of health policies, health services delivery and overall health workforce. CASE PRESENTATION: The need to regulate NCT in Portugal stemmed from a growing demand for NCT (and acceptability) among lay citizens and a positive attitude among conventional health professionals which also advocated for a regulatory framework. Political efforts undertaken since 2003 allowed for important advances in the regulation of NCT, beneficiating safe professional practices, and ensuring future academic training at the highest standards, with the defining moment of the social and legal model transition occurring in 2013, when acupuncture, chiropractic, homeopathy, naturopathy, osteopathy, phytotherapy and traditional Chinese Medicine were recognized and regulated. Nevertheless, and because the process knew important time gaps, significant deficiencies arose, mainly between regulation of the training and of the professional activities and the capacity to ensure the continuous production of NCT professionals at an acceptable rate and with minimum quality standards guaranteed. CONCLUSIONS: The regulation of NCT in Portugal was lengthy but steady and was able to bring consumers a safer practice environment and NCT professionals a legal and deontological umbrella for their training, practice, and professional development. Nevertheless, and despite the growing ...

Funding Information: The authors with to thank FCT (Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia) for funds to GHTM – UID/. Publisher Copyright: © 2020 Elsevier B.V. ; The Portuguese National Health Service (NHS) was established in 1979. Since its inception, the relationship of the NHS with private-for-profit and private-non-profit organisations has been controversially discussed between left and right-wing political parties, and this has also led also to academic debate. In 1990, a Health Basic Law was approved by right-wing parties, which allowed public-private partnerships (PPPs) in the health system and led to an increased role of the private sector in health care provision. During the 2015 general elections, the role of PPPs in the health system was an important topic of discussion, with all left-wing parties calling for an end of PPPs in the NHS. In 2019, after two years of intense political controversies, left-wing parties supporting the minority socialist government approved a new Health Basic Law. This paper analyses the process of policy formulation, tracing the process of adoption and the views of the main political parties involved. Although some parties wished to eliminate PPPs and to mandate that services in the NHS should be provided exclusively by public providers, this was not included in the final version of the law. Nevertheless, the new Health Basic Law re-enhances the central role of the NHS in the health system, clarifying that the private and non-profit sectors should only play a complementary role. ; publishersversion ; published

BACKGROUND: Angola is among one of the most deprived countries in the world in terms of medical professionals. In the past decade, the Angolan Government has invested in the expansion of faculties of medicine in the country. We analysed the profiles of medical students in Angola according to four clusters of medical schools: older faculty in the country, private faculties, Cuban sponsored faculties and military faculty; under the assumption that the organizational culture of the different faculties might influence the expectations and decisions towards future professional life of medical students regarding where they want to work (community versus hospital) and in which sector (exclusively public versus not exclusively public). METHODS: Observational cross-sectional study. Piloted, standardized questionnaire to final year medical students or higher year of training in the first four-month of 2014 (N = 402). Data were entered into a SPSS v.20 database and descriptive statistics computed. Statistical significance for categorical variables was tested by Pearson chi-square, Fisher exact or likelihood ratio tests as appropriate. Comparison of means was tested with Anova. Backward elimination binary logistic regression was used to test the hypothesis that type of faculty of medicine is an important determinant of future professional practice, i.e., level (hospital vs. community) or sector of practice (exclusive public sector vs. private or private and public), while controlling for confounders. RESULTS: After controlling for age, sex, marital status, place of birth and place of primary and secondary education, type of family and family influence, students were more likely to choose community over hospital practice and to prefer exclusive public practice if attending a Cuba supported faculty of medicine. CONCLUSIONS: Medical education cannot be isolated from planning of the medical workforce. Some important and impactful careers choices, like choosing rural over urban practice, public over private sector practice, have ...

Funding Information: Rosa Ferrinho for assistance with data processing and literature search. COSEP for data collection. Funda??o para a Ci?ncia e Tecnologia for funds to GHTM UID/04413/2020. This study was part of a broader consultation for the Government of Angola. Authorization for publishing this study was obtained from the Ministry of Health of Angola. Funding Information: The study was sponsored by the Government of Angola. Publisher Copyright: © 2021, The Author(s). ; Background: Angola is among one of the most deprived countries in the world in terms of medical professionals. In the past decade, the Angolan Government has invested in the expansion of faculties of medicine in the country. We analysed the profiles of medical students in Angola according to four clusters of medical schools: older faculty in the country, private faculties, Cuban sponsored faculties and military faculty; under the assumption that the organizational culture of the different faculties might influence the expectations and decisions towards future professional life of medical students regarding where they want to work (community versus hospital) and in which sector (exclusively public versus not exclusively public). Methods: Observational cross-sectional study. Piloted, standardized questionnaire to final year medical students or higher year of training in the first four-month of 2014 (N = 402). Data were entered into a SPSS v.20 database and descriptive statistics computed. Statistical significance for categorical variables was tested by Pearson chi-square, Fisher exact or likelihood ratio tests as appropriate. Comparison of means was tested with Anova. Backward elimination binary logistic regression was used to test the hypothesis that type of faculty of medicine is an important determinant of future professional practice, i.e., level (hospital vs. community) or sector of practice (exclusive public sector vs. private or private and public), while controlling for confounders. Results: After controlling for age, sex, marital status, place of birth and place of primary and secondary education, type of family and family influence, students were more likely to choose community over hospital practice and to prefer exclusive public practice if attending a Cuba supported faculty of medicine. Conclusions: Medical education cannot be isolated from planning of the medical workforce. Some important and impactful careers choices, like choosing rural over urban practice, public over private sector practice, have deep influences in the medical professionals' labour market. Some of these decisions are shaped even before the end of the medical training. As such, the monitoring of future professional intentions in medical schools should be done regularly to accommodate both the health system needs and the hopes and dreams of medical trainees. ; publishersversion ; published

Résumé Cet article passe en revue soixante années de réformes du système de santé portugais. Les principales réformes ont été engagées après la Révolution de 1974. Jusqu'à la fin des années quatre-vingt, le Service national de santé est resté très centralisé. Puis, à partir des années quatre-vingt-dix, un certain nombre de mesures témoignent de l'intérêt porté à la décentralisation : instauration des autorités sanitaires régionales, création de marchés internes de la santé et d'agences de contractualisation, séparation entre les fonctions d'acheteur et d'offreur, tentatives d'introduction de méthodes de gestion issues du monde de l'entreprise, mise en place de services de proximité, intégration verticale (locale) et création de réseaux régionaux d'établissements. Dans le cadre de ce processus de décentralisation, la politique de santé a continué de relever de l'État – y compris sur le plan fiscal et financier –, tandis que la fourniture des soins a été de plus en plus décentralisée. Cette décentralisation de l'offre de soins a obéi essentiellement à deux logiques : la dévolution et la déconcentration. Des tentatives de privatisation ont également eu lieu, mais ont entraîné une recentralisation. Au Portugal, la recherche d'un modèle de décentralisation s'est donc traduite par une redéfinition continuelle de la place qu'occupent respectivement les niveaux central et sub-national dans le processus décisionnel. Il est peu vraisemblable que l'on assiste à un ample mouvement de décentralisation au Portugal dans un avenir proche.

Publisher Copyright: © 2021 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. ; The time and type of the States' responses to the COVID-19 pandemic varied with the severity of the epidemiological situation, the perceived risk, the political organisation and the model of health system of the country. We discuss the response of Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Portugal and the United Kingdom during the first months of the COVID-19 epidemic in 2020, considering the political organisation of the country and its health system model. We analyse public health measures implemented to contain or mitigate the pandemic, as well as those related to governance, resources and reorganisation of services, financing mechanisms, response of the health system itself and health outcomes. To measure the burden of COVID-19, we use several indicators. The adoption of measures, to contain and mitigate epidemic varied in degree and time of adoption. All countries reorganised their governance structure and the provision of care, despite the differences in political models and health systems (ranging from a more unitary and centralised political organisational model—France and Portugal; to a decentralised matrix—Germany, Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom). Rather than the differences in political models and health systems, the explanation for the success in tackling the epidemic seems to lay in other social determinants of health. ; published

Este estudo tem por objetivo analisar a tendência temporal da mortalidade materna e descrever as características sociodemográficas e causas de morte nas macrorregiões do Piauí. Tratou-se de um estudo ecológico de série temporal, com dados do Sistema de Informações sobre Mortalidade, de 2006 a 2021, analisados utilizando regressão de Prais-Winsten. As razões de mortalidade materna foram calculadas para o estado, macrorregiões por quadriênios. Identificaram-se 666 óbitos maternos e 781.074 nascidos vivos. Os óbitos ocorreram em negras (81,1%), com 20 a 39 anos (78,5%), com companheiro (45,4%), menos de 8 anos de estudo (43,7 %), ocupação remunerada (39,5%), tendo como causas: síndromes hipertensivas (26,2%), hemorragias (10,9%), infecções (10,8%), aborto (4,2%), COVID-19 (3,8%). A razão de mortalidade materna do estado, no período, foi de 85,3 por 100.000 nascidos vivos com tendência estacionária (variação percentual anual (VPA): 0,03; IC 95%: -2,1; 2,2). Apresentaram tendência ascendente as macrorregiões do Semiárido (VPA: 31,6; IC 95%: 9,7; 57,8) no período de 2006 a 2009, Meio Norte (VPA: 9,8; IC 95%: 1,2; 19,5) e Cerrados (VPA: 25,9; IC 95%: 1,6; 56,0), entre 2018 a 2021. Concluímos, pois, que as mortes ocorreram principalmente em negras, com menos escolaridade, de causas evitáveis. A razão de mortalidade materna no estado foi alta com tendência estacionária.

PALABRAS-CHAVE: Mortalidade Materna. Causas de morte. Sistemas de Informação em Saúde. Saúde da mulher. COVID 19. Epidemiologia

This study aimed to verify tuberculosis (TB) incidence and mortality behavior in areas covered by the Family Health Strategy and Bolsa Família Program, with or with no income inequality. This is an ecological study of the 26 Brazilian federal states and the Federal District. We used univariate, multivariate and spatial analyzes. We calculated the univariate analysis, the measure of position (median) and the measure of dispersion (amplitude) of the variables. In the multivariate analysis, seven groups were identified through hierarchical grouping analysis. The thematic maps construction showed a heterogeneous distribution between the groups due to the specific characteristics. The study evidenced the epidemiological TB reality in Brazil and its behavior in areas covered by the Family Health Strategy and Bolsa Família Program. No differences were observed in incidence and mortality when coverage of these programs was satisfactory, which evidences the disease relation to other determinants. ; Propôs-se verificar como a incidência e mortalidade por tuberculose (TB) se comportam em áreas cobertas pela Estratégia Saúde da Família e Bolsa Família, com ou sem desigualdade de renda. Estudo ecológico dos 26 Estados federados e o Distrito Federal do Brasil. Foram empregadas análises univariadas, multivariadas e análises espaciais. Na análise univariada, calculou-se a medida de posição (mediana) e a medida de dispersão (amplitude) das variáveis. Na análise multivariada, identificou-se sete grupos através da análise de agrupamento pelo método hierárquico. A construção dos mapas temáticos demonstrou uma distribuição heterogênea entre os grupos, devido às características particulares. O estudo evidenciou a realidade epidemiológica da TB no Brasil e seu comportamento em áreas cobertas pela Estratégia Saúde da Família e Programa Bolsa Família. Não observou diferenças no que se refere à incidência e mortalidade quando satisfatória cobertura desses programas, o que evidencia a relação da doença a outros determinantes.

This study aimed to verify tuberculosis (TB) incidence and mortality behavior in areas covered by the Family Health Strategy and Bolsa Família Program, with or with no income inequality. This is an ecological study of the 26 Brazilian federal states and the Federal District. We used univariate, multivariate and spatial analyzes. We calculated the univariate analysis, the measure of position (median) and the measure of dispersion (amplitude) of the variables. In the multivariate analysis, seven groups were identified through hierarchical grouping analysis. The thematic maps construction showed a heterogeneous distribution between the groups due to the specific characteristics. The study evidenced the epidemiological TB reality in Brazil and its behavior in areas covered by the Family Health Strategy and Bolsa Família Program. No differences were observed in incidence and mortality when coverage of these programs was satisfactory, which evidences the disease relation to other determinants. ; Propôs-se verificar como a incidência e mortalidade por tuberculose (TB) se comportam em áreas cobertas pela Estratégia Saúde da Família e Bolsa Família, com ou sem desigualdade de renda. Estudo ecológico dos 26 Estados federados e o Distrito Federal do Brasil. Foram empregadas análises univariadas, multivariadas e análises espaciais. Na análise univariada, calculou-se a medida de posição (mediana) e a medida de dispersão (amplitude) das variáveis. Na análise multivariada, identificou-se sete grupos através da análise de agrupamento pelo método hierárquico. A construção dos mapas temáticos demonstrou uma distribuição heterogênea entre os grupos, devido às características particulares. O estudo evidenciou a realidade epidemiológica da TB no Brasil e seu comportamento em áreas cobertas pela Estratégia Saúde da Família e Programa Bolsa Família. Não observou diferenças no que se refere à incidência e mortalidade quando satisfatória cobertura desses programas, o que evidencia a relação da doença a outros determinantes.

Objective: To study the current legislation and trends in terminations of pregnancy in the European Union (EU). Design: Data were collected on legislation and statistics for terminations of pregnancy. Setting: Population-based statistics from the EU member states. Population: Women in reproductive age in the 27 EU member states. Methods: Information on legislation was collected for all 27 EU member states. Statistical information until 2008 was compiled from international (n = 24) and national sources (n = 17). Statistical data were not available for Austria, Cyprus and Luxembourg. Main outcomes measures: Terminations of pregnancy per 1000 women aged 15-49 years. Results: Ireland, Malta and Poland have restrictive legislation. Luxembourg permits termination of pregnancy on physical and mental health indications; Cyprus, Finland, and the UK further include socio-economic indications. In all other EU member states termination of pregnancy can be performed in early pregnancy on a women's request. In general, the rates of termination of pregnancy have declined in recent years. In total, 10.3 terminations were reported per 1000 women aged 15-49 years in the EU in 2008. The rate was 12.3/1000 for countries requiring a legal indication for termination, and 11.0/1000 for countries allowing termination on request. Northern Europe (10.9/1000) and Central and Eastern Europe (10.8/1000) had higher rates than Southern Europe (8.9/1000). Northern Europe, however, had substantially higher rates of termination of pregnancy among teenagers. Conclusion: A more consistent and coherent reporting of terminations of pregnancy is needed in the EU. The large variation of termination rates between countries suggests that termination of pregnancy rates may be reduced in some countries without restricting women's access to termination. Sexual education and provision of access to reliable and affordable contraception are essential to achieve low rates of termination of pregnancy. ; The REPROSTAT 3 (The State of Reproductive Health and Fertility in the European Union) project has been funded by the Health Programme of DG Health and Consumers at the European Commission and High Commissariat of Health, Ministry of Health, Portugal. ; peer-reviewed

Este estudo tem por objetivo apresentar as características sociodemográficas e clínicas dos óbitos maternos causados por covid-19, em uma maternidade de referência no Nordeste, Brasil. Foi realizado um estudo retrospectivo, do tipo série de casos, descritivo, utilizando dados do Sistema de Informações sobre Mortalidade, fichas de investigação e ficha de análise dos óbitos ocorridos entre 2020 e 2021. As variáveis foram analisadas com a estatística descritiva. Identificaram-se 24 óbitos por covid-19,22 na gravidez; em mulheres com idade mediana de 30 anos (intervalo interquartil: 25,5 – 37,0). A maioria dos óbitos ocorreu em residentes em outros municípios do Piauí (n=17), com companheiro (n=13), multíparas (n=18), fizeram consulta pré-natal (n=16), com menos de seis consultas (n=9), parto/aborto na maternidade de referência (n=23), realizado por obstetras (n=23), via de parto cesárea (n=12); internadas na unidade de terapia intensiva (n=24), não tomaram vacina contra covid-19 (24). Quanto as comorbidades e complicações, 11 eram obesas e 11 apresentaram infecções secundária a covid-19. Houve aumento de mortes maternas entre 2020 e 2021 devido a ocorrência da covid-19, principalmente, em mulheres jovens, durante a gestação e com comorbidades e complicações clínicas.
PALABRAS-CHAVE: Mortalidade Materna. Covid-19. Sistemas de Informação em Saúde. Epidemiologia Descritiva.