Motivational drivers for health professionals in a large quality improvement collaborative project in Brazil: a qualitative study.

Background: The success of collaborative quality improvement (QI) projects in healthcare depends on the context and engagement of health teams; however, the factors that modulate teams' motivation to participate in these projects are still unclear. The objective of the current study was to explore the barriers to and facilitators of motivation; the perspective was health professionals in a large project aiming to implement evidence-based infection prevention practices in intensive care units of Brazilian hospitals.

Methods: This qualitative study was based on content analysis of semistructured in-depth interviews held with health professionals who participated in a collaborative QI project named "Improving patient safety on a large scale in Brazil".

The WHO Safe Childbirth Checklist implementation: impact on the prescription of magnesium sulphate through a one-year longitudinal study.

Background: Preeclampsia is a relatively frequent condition during pregnancy and childbirth. The administration of magnesium sulphate as a prophylactic and treatment measure is an evidence-based practice for eclampsia; however, it is not consistently used, compromising the health of pregnant women. This study aimed to assess compliance with recommendations of the International Society for the Study of Hypertension in Pregnancy (ISSHP) for the use of MgSO in pregnant women with preeclampsia, before and after the implementation of the World Health Organization Safe Childbirth Checklist (SCC).

School of Medicine of Federal University of Rio Grande Do Norte: A traditional curriculum with innovative trends in medical education.

Introduction: The Medical School of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN) is one of the biggest public medical schools in Northeast Brazil. In the last decade, significant investment in faculty development, innovative learning methodologies and student engagement has been key milestones in educational improvement at this medical school, harnessed to recent political changes that strengthened community-based and emergency education. This study describes how curriculum changes in UFRN Medical School have been responsible for major improvements in medical education locally and which impacts such transformations may have on the educational community.

ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE PATTERNS OF URINARY TRACT INFECTIONS IN A NORTHEASTERN BRAZILIAN CAPITAL.

Urinary tract infection is a common problem worldwide. Its clinical characteristics and susceptibility rates of bacteria are important in determining the treatment of choice and its duration. This study assessed the frequency and susceptibility to antimicrobials of uropathogens isolated from community-acquired urinary tract infections in the city of Natal, Rio Grande do Norte State capital, northeastern Brazil, from 2007 to 2010.