Workplaces occupied by physiotherapists: less demand for primary care

Abstract

In view of the expanded view of health proposed by the Unified Health System (SUS), the approach given to the illness process required a prism focused on the biopsychosocial view and no longer on the biomedical model, which led to a reorganization in the training of health professionals. Thus, the National Curriculum Guidelines were established guiding the pedagogical projects of the courses towards the biopsychosocial model, so that the International Classification of Functionality, Disability and Health contributes to this scenario through its multidimensional and non-reductionist approach. However, physiotherapy has historically been strongly influenced by the biomedical model, distancing it from primary care (PC). This is an exploratory, descriptive and quantitative study, with secondary data source obtained through the National Register of Health Establishments in Brazil, whose objective was to verify, within a 10-year interval, at which level of health care most physiotherapists and their representation in PC are concentrated. The findings indicated that PC represents the minority scenario of jobs occupied by physical therapists, reflecting the hegemony of the biomedical model and reinforcing the rehabilitation character historically given to the profession.

Key words:
Gaps in professional practice; Physiotherapy; Unified Health System; Health care levels