Qualificação à distância para promoção da alimentação adequada e saudável no Sistema Único de Saúde

Abstract

Introduction: Actions to promote adequate and healthy food (PAAS in Portuguese) have been gaining space on public policy agendas due to the urgency of caring for non-communicable chronic diseases. For the implementation of these actions in daily work, health professionals must be qualified, aiming at their empowerment and autonomy. Objective: To evaluate professional qualification activity for the development of collective actions of PAAS in Primary Health Care (PHC). Methods: Prospective and descriptive study conducted to evaluate professional qualifications offered at a distance, with a workload of 30 hours. Three classes were offered to PHC professionals from all Brazilian macro-regions. Quantitative online questionnaires were used and applied immediately after completion of the course and after three months. Results were stratified by country macro-region and course completion. Results: Of the 3,957 enrolled, about a thousand professionals completed the course (completion rate: 25.3%), most of them women and registered dietitian. Professional qualification was considered very relevant for professional practice (99.2%) and with adequate methodological quality (99.6%). The main obstacle for not completing the course was the lack of time (78.1%). Most of the non-graduates were older, nurses, with more time working in the SUS, those who accessed the course via cell phone, and previous participation in professional qualification on the subject. Conclusions: Professional qualification was able to develop skills and abilities to conduct collective PAAS actions among health professionals. However, strategies need to be proposed to increase the completion rate.