Conhecendo o atendimento nutricional da rede pública de saúde do Rio Grande do Norte

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To get to know the profile, structure, and focus of nutritional care in the public network of Rio Grande do Norte and reflect on the main difficulties of nutritional care considering the point of view of nutritionists. METHODS: This is a quantitative observational cross-sectional study, consisting of 57 nutritionists who perform nutritional care in the context of Primary Care. To obtain the data, it was decided to use a questionnaire via the internet. Data collection took place between the months of December / 2019 to March / 2020. The data were grouped in the Excel program and analyzed in a descriptive way considering the nature of the variables. The project was submitted and accepted by the Ethics and Research Committee (CEP) according to CNS Resolution No. 466/2012. RESULTS: The majority of the nutritionists in this sample are female, with an average age of 31.4 years, without a spouse or partner, graduated from private educational institutions, have a postgraduate degree, are commissioned, and have a journey working hours of 30 hours per week, an area of expertise within the scope of primary care predominates in the Extended Family Health Center (NASF). They primarily use instruments such as scale, stadiometer, and measuring tape, based on the calculation of the Body Mass Index (BMI) and waist circumference as indicators of nutritional status. Regarding food surveys, the use of a 24-hour recall, a food frequency questionnaire, and a SISVAN consumption marker prevailed with a higher percentage. The time of the first consultation lasts an average of 30 minutes, regarding the characteristic of the prescription of the diet plan, this is mostly of a qualitative nature and the return happens 30 days after the first consultation. CONCLUSION: This study is of great relevance for understanding the difficulties and seeking improvement for nutritional care in primary care to improve professional performance in this area.