Hospital admissions due to ambulatory care-sensitive conditions in a health region of Sao Paulo State, Brazil, 2008-2010

Objective: describe hospital admissions for ambulatory sensitive conditions (ACS) in the Sao Jose do Rio Preto health region, Sao Paulo State, Brazil. Methods. a descriptive study using data from the Unified Health System's Hospital Admissions Information System, 2008-2010. Results: the ACS coefficient for this health region was around 13.0/1000 inhabitants each year. The five most common diagnoses were heart failure, angina, urinary tract infections, infectious gastroenteritis and cerebrovascular diseases. Circulatory system diseases were the primary diagnosis recorded in 41.5% of these admissions. ACS expenditure was R$ 30,370,691.08, corresponding to 17% of the total costs of hospital admissions in this health region. Conclusion: the occurrence potentially preventable ACS indicates the need for further investigations about possible factors that may be interfering with the organization and outcomes of primary care in the region studied.