The existing public health care infrastructure in Brazil was primarily created to deal with acute diseases. Today, a different health care system is needed to cope with the lengthy duration and demand of chronic diseases.
An increase in life expectancy in Brazil of up to 12.4 years 1 over the last 30 years has resulted in a larger elderly population requiring treatment for chronic diseases, therefore increasing the demand for public health care services.
Despite the significant efforts from the City of Rio de Janeiro’s Health Secretariat to deal with chronic diseases, the number of patients continue to increase. There is a strong need for tools that enable the existing health care workers to reach more patients faster and more efficiently.
