A percepção do agente comunitário de saúde sobre a atuação fisioterapêutica na atenção primária à saúde do município de São Luís - MA

Abstract

Physiotherapy's role in the multi-professional Primary Health Care (PHC) team includes integrated actions, home visits and health education. For this work to be effective, as well as that of the other professionals in the team, such as the Community Health Agents (ACS), who have a greater bond with the community, it is essential to have matrix support, good communication and a clear understanding of the profession. Recognizing the importance of both physiotherapists and CHAs, this study aimed to analyze the perception of community health agents about physiotherapy in primary health care in the municipality of São Luís - MA. The specific objectives were: to discuss the role of physiotherapy in primary health care; to estimate the level of knowledge of CHAs about the services offered by physiotherapy in primary health care; and to correlate the level of education of community health workers with their

perception of physiotherapy in primary health care. This was an observational, cross- sectional, quantitative and descriptive field study, approved by the Research Ethics

Committee under CAAE No. 82310624.6.0000.8707 and by the municipality's Secretary of Health (SEMUS). The study included 44 community agents from 10 basic health units in the city of São Luís - MA. For data collection, a sociodemographic questionnaire was used with information on length of service, marital status, race, age, schooling and questions related to the importance of physiotherapy for community health workers. Fisher's exact test was used for the analysis, with a significance level of 5% (p<0.5%). The results indicated that community health workers viewed the presence of physiotherapy positively and that there was no correlation between the level of education of CHWs and their perception of the profession, but that CHWs with secondary education considered physiotherapy to be more important in PHC. Thus, the study found a favorable conclusion about the perception of physiotherapy in PHC for CHWs, since they are the link between the community and the FHS, having daily contact with users, and recognize the need for this professional in comprehensive health care in the community.