Challenges of women health in Baixada Santista: access to HIV diagnostic and to the treatment of sexually transmitted diseases

DOI: 10.15343/0104-7809.200832.4.9

Abstract

AIDS in Brazil is no doubt a women’s disease, a fact described from the 19901s, and it continues to be one of the main tendencies of the epidemic
in Baixada Santista. Due to this, the universal access to HIV tests, together with preventive actions directed to the various population groups are seen as the
principal strategies for combating the epidemic. The question of access to diagnosis, as well as to STD treatment must be understood as a challenge for the
several levels of management of SUS (unified health system), especially in metropolitan regions. The present article analyzed access conditions to HIV test and
to STD treatment of women from the Metropolitan Region of Baixada Santista-SP, from primary data collected by a survey developed by local authorities of
the region with a population of more than 100.000 inhabitants. As for HIV diagnosis, results show that 79.6% of women from 25 to 39 years of age told they
did it in the basic health system in 37.6% of cases. But there are problems related to the quality of the services, especially as regards instructions and advice on
preventive actions: 51.5% of the women had had no instruction. Regarding STD, it was possible to realize that women ask for treatment especially in the basic
health system (47.3%), followed by private doctors (37.4%). However, the treatment of partners, an important strategy for breaking the chain of transmission,
happened in only 33.4% of cases.