Community health agent
Encyclopedia
Community health agent (agente comunitário de saúde or ACS, in Portuguese language
) is the title of a specific lay health care
worker developed in Brazil
by way of PACS (Program of Community Health Workers) in 1991 as part of the construction of the Brazilian Unified Health System
established by Constitution
al rule in 1988.
The agent, which was said to be inspired on the barefoot doctors program in China
, is not certified to practice medicine
or nursing
, but has the primary task of gathering information on the health status of a small community by means of a close relationship with it. In the initial design, the agent should be one of the residents of a street, neighborhood or surrounding region, and was to be selected on the basis of a good relationship with his neighbors, in addition to the ability to devote eight hours a day to the work. Every agent is supervised by a doctor
or nurse of the health clinic, and home visits are conducted in the coverage area of a basic health unit, thus producing information that can assess the main health problems of his community.
With the proposition of the Brazilian Ministry of Health in 1994, when it created the a nationwide family health program, called PSF -- Programa de Saúde da Família -- health community workers can be found in two different situations in relation to the health care system:
Currently (October 2009), there are more than 260,000 community health agents present both in rural and peri-urban areas of small municipalities as well as in highly urbanized and industrialized cities.
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
) is the title of a specific lay health care
Health care
Health care is the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease, illness, injury, and other physical and mental impairments in humans. Health care is delivered by practitioners in medicine, chiropractic, dentistry, nursing, pharmacy, allied health, and other care providers...
worker developed in Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
by way of PACS (Program of Community Health Workers) in 1991 as part of the construction of the Brazilian Unified Health System
Sistema Único de Saúde
The Sistema Único de Saúde is Brazil's publicly-funded health care system. SUS was created after the Brazilian Constitution of 1988, which assured that health care is a "right of all and an obligation of the State" . Prior to that, only people who contributed with the social security were able to...
established by Constitution
Constitution
A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
al rule in 1988.
The agent, which was said to be inspired on the barefoot doctors program in China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, is not certified to practice medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
or nursing
Nursing
Nursing is a healthcare profession focused on the care of individuals, families, and communities so they may attain, maintain, or recover optimal health and quality of life from conception to death....
, but has the primary task of gathering information on the health status of a small community by means of a close relationship with it. In the initial design, the agent should be one of the residents of a street, neighborhood or surrounding region, and was to be selected on the basis of a good relationship with his neighbors, in addition to the ability to devote eight hours a day to the work. Every agent is supervised by a doctor
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
or nurse of the health clinic, and home visits are conducted in the coverage area of a basic health unit, thus producing information that can assess the main health problems of his community.
With the proposition of the Brazilian Ministry of Health in 1994, when it created the a nationwide family health program, called PSF -- Programa de Saúde da Família -- health community workers can be found in two different situations in relation to the health care system:
- Linked to a basic health unit not yet attached to the Family Health Program;
- Connected to a basic family health as a member of the multidisciplinary team.
Currently (October 2009), there are more than 260,000 community health agents present both in rural and peri-urban areas of small municipalities as well as in highly urbanized and industrialized cities.
Duties of the Community Health Agent
- Encourage community organization continually;
- Participate in the life of the community primarily through the organizations, encouraging the discussion of issues relating to the improvement of life;
- Strengthen links between the community and health services;
- Inform other team members on the availability of health needs and social dynamics of the community;
- Lead the community for appropriate use of health services;
- Register birthBirthBirth is the act or process of bearing or bringing forth offspring. The offspring is brought forth from the mother. The time of human birth is defined as the time at which the fetus comes out of the mother's womb into the world...
s, notifiable diseaseNotifiable diseaseA notifiable disease is any disease that is required by law to be reported to government authorities. The collation of information allows the authorities to monitor the disease, and provides early warning of possible outbreaks. Many governments have enacted regulations for reporting of both human...
s and epidemiological surveillanceEpidemiological surveillanceEpidemiological surveillance is the discipline of continuously gathering, analysing, and interpreting data about diseases, and disseminating conclusions of the analyses to relevant organisations. As such, it is a key element in epidemiology....
and deathDeathDeath is the permanent termination of the biological functions that sustain a living organism. Phenomena which commonly bring about death include old age, predation, malnutrition, disease, and accidents or trauma resulting in terminal injury....
s; - Register all the families of their service area;
- Identify and register all pregnant women and children from 0 to 6 years of their service area, through home careHome careHome Care, , is health care or supportive care provided in the patient's home by healthcare professionals Home Care, (also referred to as domiciliary care or social care), is health care or supportive care provided in the patient's home by healthcare professionals Home Care, (also referred to as...
; - Integrate governmental and non-governmental organizationNon-governmental organizationA non-governmental organization is a legally constituted organization created by natural or legal persons that operates independently from any government. The term originated from the United Nations , and is normally used to refer to organizations that do not form part of the government and are...
s, groups of community associationCommunity associationA community association is a nongovernmental association of participating members of a community, such as a neighborhood, village, condominium, cooperative, or group of homeowners or property owners in a delineated geographic area. Participation may be voluntary, require a specific residency, or...
s (midwives, mother's club, etc.). - Carry out, within his/her level of competence, actions and basic health activities:
- Monitoring of pregnant women and nursing mothers.
- Promotion of breastfeedingBreastfeedingBreastfeeding is the feeding of an infant or young child with breast milk directly from female human breasts rather than from a baby bottle or other container. Babies have a sucking reflex that enables them to suck and swallow milk. It is recommended that mothers breastfeed for six months or...
. - Monitoring growth and development of children.
- Ensuring compliance with the schedule of vaccinationVaccinationVaccination is the administration of antigenic material to stimulate the immune system of an individual to develop adaptive immunity to a disease. Vaccines can prevent or ameliorate the effects of infection by many pathogens...
and other vaccinations that may be necessary. - Control of diarrheal diseaseDiarrheaDiarrhea , also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having three or more loose or liquid bowel movements per day. It is a common cause of death in developing countries and the second most common cause of infant deaths worldwide. The loss of fluids through diarrhea can cause dehydration and...
s. - Control of acute respiratory infection (ARI).
- Guidance on alternative foods.
- Use of folk medicineFolk medicine-Description:Refers to healing practices and ideas of body physiology and health preservation known to a limited segment of the population in a culture, transmitted informally as general knowledge, and practiced or applied by anyone in the culture having prior experience.All cultures and societies...
. - Promoting the sanitationSanitationSanitation is the hygienic means of promoting health through prevention of human contact with the hazards of wastes. Hazards can be either physical, microbiological, biological or chemical agents of disease. Wastes that can cause health problems are human and animal feces, solid wastes, domestic...
and improving the environmentNatural environmentThe natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species....
.
External links
- Programa de Formação de Agentes Locais de Vigilância em Saúde (In Portuguese)