Resumen

GONZALEZ, Ezequiel  y  GONZALEZ, Gustavo. Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU) status in Paraguayan Public Health Facilities in Paraguay during the time period from August 2013 to August 2014. Pediatr. (Asunción) [online]. 2015, vol.42, n.2, pp.134-138. ISSN 1683-9803.  https://doi.org/10.18004/ped.2015.agosto.134-138.

Introduction: It is estimated that 10% of newborns require special care at delivery and 1% of newborns require attention in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU). Objective: Describe the situation of NICU in the Public Health Sector in Paraguay between August 2013 and August 2014. Methods: This was an observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study. We reviewed all neonatal intensive care units at the Hospital of the National University of Asuncion Hospital and all hospitals in the Ministry of Public Health and Social Welfare Health network, both in the national capital area and the country’s interior. We evaluated: number of NICUs, geographic distribution, equipment support, physical infrastructure, support services, human resources and having a medical residency associated with the unit. Results: The Public Health Sector has 10 NICU distributed as follows: 4 in Asunción (capital city), 4 in the Central Department,  2 in the country’s interior. The total beds are:  58 beds for intensive-level care and 65 beds for intermediate-level care. The evaluation showed a lack of smoke detectors in 60% of cases, fire extinguishers and emergency exits in 70% of services, supplies stations in 20% of the units, radiology, laboratory and 24 hour Blood-bank services in 10% of units. Regarding human resources, the number of doctors working in the NICU were 154 physicians, of which 57 are certified in a medical specialty. There were residency programs in 30% of the NICU. Conclusion: After evaluating the number of NICU, geographic distribution, equipment resources, physical infrastructure, support services, human resources and training, urgent attention is needed to correct the deficits that were found in each of the evaluated aspects.

Palabras clave : Neonatal Intensive Care Units; public sector; Paraguay.

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