The Ministry of Health guarantees that Manaus will be one of the priorities of the new “More Doctors for Brazil”.

Manaus and other locations in the Nordic region are among the federal government’s priorities in relaunching the More Doctors for Brazil programme. The guarantee was presented by the management team of the Primary Health Care Secretariat of the Ministry of Health (Saps), this Thursday, 3/23, in Brasília (DF), in a meeting with the Municipal Health Secretary, Shadia Frakes, and the filing agents Jelma Coelho and Najib Salem representing the City Council Manaus.

In the federal capital, the directors of the Municipal Health Secretariat (Semsa) held meetings at the Palácio do Planalto and the Ministry of Health all day Thursday, presenting an overview of municipal health to the new government.

The resumption of the “More Doctors for Brazil” program, announced last Monday by President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, 20, was one of the main topics addressed, due to the expiration of the courses of the previous program and the fear of a shortage of doctors in basic health units ( UBS) in the city. Topics such as the infrastructure of these units and the resources to work in the health field were also on the agenda.

Shadia, who was received by the Special Secretary for Federal Affairs in the Secretariat of Institutional Relations, explained, “Our goal was to show the entire team of the Ministry of Health and the Presidency of the Republic the difficulties we face in the North region.” the President of the Republic, André Siciliano; by Saps Consultant, Wellington Pereira; and Special Adviser on Parliamentary and Federal Affairs to the Department of Health, Chico D’Angelo.

Manaus welcomes 53% of the population of the entire state of Amazonas in its network and currently has 211 UBS. Shadia expressed to the federal government his concern about having enough doctors in the municipality to meet the capital’s demand. According to the consultant at Saps, Wellington Pereira, the public notice of the new program will go live next week and the northern region will be well served.

The ministry had already monitored these demands, and we are aware of the difficulties in the northern region. At this very moment our team is preparing the public notice of the program, which will be issued next week, and without a doubt Manaus and the entire Nordic region will receive priority attention.”

The municipal health minister also highlighted the logistical challenge in the municipality to provide care for the river residents. “We came looking for a different look and were happy and hopeful to see the North Region welcomed by the Federal Government,” the director concluded.

More Doctors Program for Brazil

The More Doctors program has been around for ten years and was replaced by the Doctors for Brazil program during the Jair Bolsonaro (PL) government. Relaunched by President Lula as “More Doctors for Brazil,” the new program will prioritize Brazilian professionals and aim to increase the number of SUS health professionals, especially in the most vulnerable areas. In addition, investments are expected in the construction and renovation of basic healthcare units. This year, the government intends to create 15,000 jobs and will invest R$712 million.

In addition to the scholarship, professionals will also receive benefits, be entitled to up to six months maternity leave and up to 20 days paternity leave, and will be able to obtain a specialty and master’s degree during their time in the four-year program. The goal is to keep professionals in hard-to-reach areas.

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text – Lorena Quintas/Pacto

the pictures – Carol Antunes/Pacto