Access to tuberculosis diagnosis in Itaboraí City, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil: the patient's point of view.
METHODS
Itaboraí Municipality in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate access to tuberculosis (TB) diagnosis for users of the Family Health Program (FHP) and Reference Ambulatory Units (RAUs).


METHODS
A cross-sectional study was conducted in Itaboraí City, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Between July and October 2007, a sample of 100 TB patients registered consecutively with the TB Control Program was interviewed using the primary care assessment tool. The two highest scores, describing 'almost always' and 'always', or 'good' and 'very good', were used as a cut-off point to define high quality access to diagnosis.


RESULTS
FHP patients were older and had less education than RAU interviewees. Sex and overcrowding did not differ in the two groups. Patient groups did not differ with regard to the number of times care was sought at a unit, transport problems, cost of attending units and availability of consultation within 24 h. Adequate access to diagnosis was identified by 62% of the FHP patients and 53% of the RAU patients (P = 0.01).


CONCLUSIONS
In Itaboraí, Rio de Janeiro, TB patients believe that the FHP units provide greater access to TB diagnosis than RAUs. These findings will be used by the Department of Health to improve access to diagnosis in Itaboraí.
Motta
M C S
MC
Anna Nery School of Nursing, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ma.catarina@gmail.com
Villa
T C S
TC
Golub
J
J
Kritski
A L
AL
Ruffino-Netto
A
A
Silva
D F
DF
Harter
R G
RG
Scatena
L M
LM
D000328:Adult; D000554:Ambulatory Care Facilities / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001431:Bacteriological Techniques / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D018166:Health Care Reform; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009313:National Health Programs / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017060:Patient Satisfaction / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014376:Tuberculosis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000382:microbiology; D019037:Urban Health Services / Q000706:statistics & numerical data