DEVELOPMENT OF AN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCE FOR HEALTH ADVISORS: A STRATEGY TO IMPROVE TRANSPARENCY IN HEALTH MANAGEMENT
Social Participation, Health Council, Accountability, Transparency.
Social participation is one of the fundamental principles of the Unified Health System (UHS), ensured by the Brazilian Federal Constitution of 1988 and regulated by Laws nº 8.080/1990 and nº 8.142/1990. This participation occurs mainly through Health Councils, collegiate bodies responsible for monitoring health planning and assessing public management accountability, particularly through the Annual Management Report (AMR). However, for the Health Councils to effectively fulfill this role, their members must possess adequate technical skills to analyze and interpret the data presented in these reports, exercising social control and enhancing transparency. Given this necessity, the present study aimed to develop a self-instructional course based on the weaknesses identified by audits carried out by the National Audit Department of UHS (NDUHS), seeking to qualify health councilors for a more effective analysis of the AMRs. The research adopted a qualitative exploratory approach using documentary analysis as a method. Reports from 27 audits performed by NDUHS in Brazilian municipalities in 2022 regarding the 2021 AMRs were analyzed. The findings revealed weaknesses related to conformity and accuracy of the information presented in the reports, also highlighting difficulties faced by the Health Councils in assessing these documents. Based on these results, a self-instructional course was developed, structured to be available through the Virtual Learning Environment of UHS. Thus, this research reinforces the importance of strengthening social control through continuing education and the technical qualification of health councilors.