Telehealth in primary healthcare: an analysis of Belo Horizonte's experience.

Background: Telehealth resources were implemented in the city of Belo Horizonte, providing tools for the medical assistance model as well as strengthening the quality of primary healthcare attention.

Objective: The objective of this study was to analyze the characteristics of the incorporation of telehealth resources in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, and its contribution to the structuring of primary healthcare.

Materials And Methods: This study focused on a description of the telehealth projects related to primary healthcare in the city and the results of the implementation process. The sources for this analysis include documents presented to financing institutions, reports from the Belo Horizonte City Department of Health, and articles and technical reports related to the evaluations of the project.

Results: The BHTelehealth Project has been established in 148 basic health units in Belo Horizonte. It develops assistance and educational activities by using 3D modeling, interactive videos, and animations. The analysis of this implementation process identified both positive and negative aspects. Telehealth has strengthened the role of primary healthcare as the coordinator of attention. It has reinforced primary care units by widening the scope of attention offered at this level and has provided primary care staff with a powerful arsenal of up-to-date information and tools.

Conclusion: BHTelehealth served as a model for implementing the National Telehealth Program, in course in Brazil, involving 900 cities. This is attributed to its positive impact on the training of primary care unit professionals.