Uso inadequado do Pronto-Socorro Pediátrico

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To identify the reasons for seeking the Pediatric Emergency Room (PER) of a city in the state of São Paulo and define the profile of users who seek the service. METODOLOGY: Observational prospective study conducted from February to August 2021, through structured interviews with guardians of children taken to the PSP with a form developed for the research containing sociodemographic and clinical information, in addition to the emergency classification at the time of triage. Data were presented as mean ± standard deviation (SD) or absolute frequency and percentage. RESULTS: A total of 252 caregivers were interviewed, with the majority being mothers (76.2%) or fathers (15.9%), with a mean age of 32 years (SD=±8.7). High or moderate level of concern about the childs health status was answered by 91.6% of caregivers, although most cases were classified at screening as minor or not urgent (77.3%). CONCLUSION: The level of concern of the caregiver and the belief that PER provides more effective care motivated the non-urgent search for this service. The data reflect the need for health education to raise awareness of the flow of care in the Unified Health System, identifying primary health care as the gateway to the system and the PER as a place intended for urgent and emergency care. Ultimately, it is intended to contribute to the provision of care in a qualified manner to the comprehensive health of the child.

Keywords

• unified health system
• pediatric emergency medicine
• emergency service
• hhospital
• child care
• pediatrics