Regional planning of health services: what do the managers say?

Abstract

This study objective was to analyze the perception of health-care managers about the local and regional planning in the west Santa Catarina cities, considering the main factors that influence the public management of the health services network organization. The study covered 21 cities that are linked to the Regional Development Agency (ADR) of the municipalities of Chapecó, Quilombo and Palmitos, from Santa Catarina state. The health-care managers were interviewed in December 2015, and the interview was guided by a script with semi-structured questions. The method of analysis was the Collective Subject Discourse (CSD), which originated four central ideas: the role of the manager in planning; team planning; the Municipal Health Council participation; and challenges for the use of epidemiological data as management tools. Despite recognizing advances in regional health service planning, the managers reported low popular participation in decision-making arenas, besides structural issues, such as the lack of qualified human resources to work and analyze the informational databases, resulting in low commitment and accountability in the effectiveness of the health planning which was developed in team.