Pharmaceutical services evaluation in Brazil: broadening the results of a WHO methodology.

The objective of this paper is to explore and analyze the results of the Diagnosis of the Pharmaceutical Situation in Brazil (DiagAF-Br) from a regional perspective. The study made use of an exploratory approach of multiple cases based on the DiagAF-Br data collected in five Brazilian states. A descriptive analysis of selected indicators was performed in each of the Brazilian states in three pharmaceutical dimensions: access, quality, and rational use of medicines. The mainly results concerning the percentage of completed prescriptions varied from 1.1% in the State of Goiás to 98.6% in Espírito Santo; the percentage of patients who know how to take their medicines varied from 60.4% in Sergipe to 93.3% in Rio Grande do Sul. Educational level showed to be an important predictor of knowledge on how to use medicines, especially relevant when prescription is completed. The average number of prescribed medicines, approximately 2.1, did not show any difference between the visited sites. Different levels of management capacity and services organization were identified, suggesting the need for more adequate strategies to improve access, quality and mainly rational use of medicines in Brazil.