title: [Case-resolving capacity of health care services according to a household survey: users' perceptions].
abstract: The objective of this study was to identify the case-resolving capacity of health care services used by individuals who reported a health problem within two weeks prior to the interview and to unveil their respective perceptions of the solution to the problem. Data were obtained from a household morbidity survey including 10,199 interviewees, performed in the southwestern area of the city of São Paulo, Brazil, in 1989/1990. Some health problem was reported by 31.3% of interviewees, and 47.7% sought help to solve their problem. Primary health services were the main gateway into the health system (35.7%), followed by hospitals (25.4%), and outpatient clinics (24.3%). The case-resolving capacity in the medical services was greater than 90%; 44.5% had their problem solved, 35.5% were under treatment, and 10.5% reported that their problem had not been solved. The largest proportion of problems solved belonged to respiratory and digestive system, infectious and parasitic diseases, and ill-defined symptoms, signs, and conditions. Due to the large proportion of individuals still in treatment, this study does not allow one to conclude that the health care services had a high case-resolving capacity, although they were capable of handling the patient demand.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Enfermagem Médico Cirúrgica, Escola de Enfermagem, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brasil. rturrini@usp.br
authors.forename: Ruth Natalia Teresa
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Turrini
authors.forename: Maria Lúcia
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Lebrão
authors.forename: Chester Luiz Galvão
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Cesar
mesh_terms: D001938:Brazil; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D006296:Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006301:Health Services Needs and Demand / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D008297:Male; D010465:Perception