Oral health management at the municipal level: legitimacy of coordination

Abstract

Introduction: The political administrative demands imply in the need to strengthen of management capacity. Objective: to analyze the legitimacy of municipal dental health coordination. Material and method: Interviews were conducted with dental health coordinators, by a researcher, in 28 municipalities of the state of São Paulo, using a structured form covering the following dimensions: Municipal Management of Dental Health; Infrastructure; Management of Work and Organization of Dental Health Care. Result: It was observed that 53.6% of the municipalities do not have the position of municipal coordinator of dental health and 7.1% is not exercised by a dental surgeon. Only 14.3% of the coordinators have public health training, 85.7% accumulate care and management functions, 60.7% do not have sufficient time for coordination and 46.4% do not participate in health planning. There is no physical structure for the management activities in 67.8% of the cities and none has a Career Plan, Charges and Salaries implemented. Conclusion: The municipal coordination of dental health is incipient, characterized by the low participation in the processes of planning and integration with the health team and scarce local recognition about its role. There is a great trajectory to be followed in structuring the management process.