Health promotion and prevention actions in the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS): evaluation of the temporal trend and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic

Objective: To evaluate health promotion and prevention in the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS) between 2008 and 2022. Method: An epidemiological study was conducted, with an ecological approach, as a time series. APPS-related data available in the Outpatient Information System of the SUS (SIA/SUS) over the last 15 years were used, normalized to every 100,000 Brazilian residents, characterizing the incidence. COVID-19 pre- and post-pandemic periods were outlined to verify its impact on productivity. The data were analyzed with a significance level of 5%. Result: Between 2008 and 2022, 6,933,081,931 APPS were carried out in the SUS. The most frequent modality was home visits (56.3%), and the most common health professionals were health and endemic agents (59.8%). For the entire study period, the incidence was 3,407,327 APPS per 100,000 Brazilian residents, with an annual median of 281,999. Furthermore, there was a significant decreasing trend over the last 15 years (p <0.001), whose annual percentage change was estimated at -6.7%. Disregarding COVID-19 pandemic years, the trend remained to decrease (p = 0.028). At last, when comparing it to the pre-pandemic period, the incidence of APPS were 32% lower in the first, 26% lower in the second, and 21% lower in the third year after the COVID-19 pandemic onset (p <0.001). Conclusion: It was possible to conclude that APPS in the SUS have reduced in the last 15 years.