Evolution of the provision of speech therapists in the Brazilian public healthcare system: study on correlations with social indictors in the last decade

Abstract

Purpose: Investigate the correlation between the provision of speech therapists in the Brazilian public healthcare system and social indicators between 2007 and 2016. Methods: An ecological study was conducted. The units of analysis were the 27 federative units of Brazil. Indicators of the provision of speech therapists in public healthcare and the relative evolution of this provision in the period as well as the Human Development Index and Gini Index related to the year 2010 were analyzed. Correlations were investigated using Spearman’s test (α = 5%). Results: In 2007, the provision of speech therapists in the public healthcare system was 3.55/105 residents, with the lowest indicator in the state of Amazonas and the highest in the state of Mato Grosso do Sul. In 2016, this indicator nearly doubled in the country; the lowest indicator was again in the state of Amazonas and the highest was in the state of Piauí. An important relative evolution occurred in the provision of speech therapists in Brazil in the period analyzed, with significant variation among the federative units. A negative correlation was found between the relative evolution in the last decade and the Human Development Index and a positive correlation was found with the Gini Index. Conclusion: The increase in the provision of speech therapists in the Brazilian public healthcare system was greater in federative units with lower human development and a greater concentration of income. Despite this, the results from 2016 showed the maintenance of the status quo, with a greater provision in federative units with greater human development.