PNAD COVID-19: A powerful new tool for public health surveillance in Brazil

Abstract

On February 3, 2020, the Brazilian Ministry of Health declared a state of emergency in public health of national relevance due to the pandemic caused by the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. As a result, IBGE postponed the 2020 Demographic Census and started to formulate a COVID-19 PNAD. The survey included a total sample of 349 thousand people in about 200 thousand households. Of the total Brazilian resident population, the IBGE estimated in May/2020 that 24.0 million (11.4%) had at least one of the flu-like syndrome symptoms. Of this contingent, 20.2 million (84.3% of all symptomatic patients) did not seek health care. The innovations brought to health surveillance and the IBGE’s pioneering spirit show that it is possible, in a continental country that has been experiencing several local epidemics at different times in its territory, that other countries also develop similar household surveys, with weekly data collection (referred to epidemiological weeks) by telephone in an innovative and timely manner. The COVID-19 PNAD also brought new technology to the Institute, reviving its role as an external evaluator of the Unified Health System (SUS).