Knowledge of healthcare professionals about poliomyelitis and postpoliomyelitis: a cross-sectional study

ABSTRACT BACKGROUND: Postpoliomyelitis syndrome is a clinical condition that can affect poliomyelitis survivors. OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to evaluate knowledge of poliomyelitis and postpoliomyelitis syndrome among Brazilian healthcare professionals. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional study conducted at a Brazilian public higher education institution located in the state of Goiás. METHODS: The participants (n = 578) were Brazilian physicians, physical therapists, nurses, nutritionists and psychologists. A self-administered questionnaire (30 questions) was designed to probe knowledge about poliomyelitis and postpoliomyelitis syndrome. From the questionnaire, we created a structured test to objectively evaluate the knowledge of these professionals. The test was composed of 20 questions and was scored over a range from 0 (totally ill-informed) to 20 (totally well-informed). RESULTS: In general, the physicians, physical therapists and nurses demonstrated better understanding of poliomyelitis and postpoliomyelitis syndrome. The healthcare professionals who had received previous information about poliomyelitis and postpoliomyelitis syndrome had significantly higher scores than those who had never received information (P < 0.001). On average, this difference was approximately 28.6%. CONCLUSIONS: The findings from the present study indicate that there is a critical need for improvement of knowledge about postpoliomyelitis syndrome among Brazilian healthcare professionals. The services provided by these professionals may therefore become compromised. Furthermore, public healthcare initiatives should be implemented to improve knowledge among healthcare professionals.

Abordagem multiprofissional no cuidado à saúde de pacientes do programa HiPErDiA / Multiprofessional approach to health care in patients of the HIPERDIA program

A Hipertensão Arterial Sistêmica (HAS) é uma doença crônica e fator de risco para o desenvolvimento de doenças cardiovasculares, cerebrovasculares e doenças renais crônicas, que podem levar a morte, sendo um grave problema de saúde pública. O principal fator apontado para a falta de sucesso no controle da HAS e prevenção das comorbidades é a não adesão ao tratamento, relacionando-se com a frequência de comparecimento às consultas, uso correto da medicação (tratamento farmacológico) e alterações comportamentais, que determinam o sucesso do tratamento não farmacológico (controle alimentar e prática de exercício físico). Objetivou-se avaliar nos pacientes do programa HIPERDIA a adesão ao tratamento e os fatores de risco relacionados à hipertensão arterial. Foram analisados os prontuários de 561 pacientes entre os anos de 1998 e 2010. A adesão foi avaliada pela frequência dos pacientes às consultas e pela prevalência dos fatores de risco, antes e após a intervenção. A evolução do quadro clínico foi analisada durante 12 anos, com a condição de inclusão de comparecimento a 2 consultas anuais. Observou-se baixa frequência de comparecimento às consultas, pois dos 561 pacientes iniciais, somente 110 satisfizeram à condição do estudo. Os fatores de risco prevalentes no início e no fimdo estudo foram sedentarismo, obesidade e dieta alimentar desequilibrada, demonstrando baixa adesão ao tratamento não farmacológico. Todavia, entre os pacientes que permaneceram no programa, houve controle eficiente da pressão arterial, indicando a importância da assistência institucionalizada

High Blood Pressure (HBP) is a chronic disease and a risk factor for cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and chronic kidney disease, which can lead to death. In addition, it is a serious public health problem. The main factor for the lack of success in controlling HBP and prevention of comorbidities is the non-compliance to treatment, which is related to the frequency of attendance to medical appointments, proper use of medication (drug treatment), and behavioral changes that determine the success of non-pharmacological treatment (diet control and physical exercise). The objective of the present study was to evaluate the risk factors related to hypertension and patient compliance to the HIPERDIA program. The medical records of 561 patients were analyzed from 1998 to 2010. The compliance to the treatment was assessed by the frequency of ambulatory visits, while the prevalence of risk was evaluated before and after the intervention. The progression of the disease was analyzed for 12 years, with the condition to include attendance at 2 annual consultations. It was observed low frequency of consultations, since only 110 patients from the 561 initially recruited complied with the condition of the study. The risk factors prevalent atthe beginning and in the end of the study were sedentary life style, obesity and unbalanced diet, demonstrating poor adherence to non-pharmacological treatment. However, among patients who remained in the program, there was effective blood pressure control, indicating the importance of institutionalized care.