PROGRAM ‘MORE MEDICAL DOCTORS‘ IN ‘BAIXADA FLUMINENSE‘, METROPOLITAN AREA OF RIO DE JANEIRO STATE.

‘More Medical Doctors‘ (MDP) is a federal government program that aims to increase the number of physicians in medically undeserved areas, such as isolated regions and the outskirts of large cities. Running since 2013, it enables the hiring of medical doctors to work in primary care setting, to ensure health care access to millions of Brazilian citizens. ‘Baixada Fluminense‘ is composed of 11 municipalities surrounding the city of Rio de Janeiro - the capital of the State – being part of its metropolitan area. It has a population of almost 3,600,000 people, HDI between 0,659-0,753 and median income around one minimum wage. The data presented here is a preliminary analysis of a research aimed at evaluating the MDP in Rio de Janeiro State. This study compares some health indicators, built from official databases (DATASUS), two years before (2012-2013) and after (2014-2015) the onset of this program. Since 2013 September, 219 new physicians were incorporated into primary care services in ‘Baixada Fluminense‘. The number of registered people increased 69,0% but no statistically significant differences were observed in the number of medical consultations in primary care. Among nineteen hospital admissions for primary care-sensitive conditions considered, were observed reduction in seven, notably those related to acute diseases such as asthma, pneumonia, PID and gastroenteritis. These results describes a initial health panorama. A more complex study, already in development, will be able to give more informations, providing better conclusions about the influence of MDP in health care attendance in the State.