Analysis of Epidemiological Indicators and Sanitation Information from the Brazilian Regions Through Information and Communication Technologies

Fundação Nacional de Saúde – FUNASA, Brazil

Abstract: The management of water resources is intrinsically related to the management of sanitation services, since drinking water supply services depend on the availability of water supplies with quantity and quality, and the absence or deficiency of sewage services negatively impacts the availability of water resources . Observing the health conditions of a population from indicators related to waterborne diseases allows inferring about the environmental and sanitary state of water resources, as well as defining strategies for conservation and mitigation of the impacts arising from the absence or deficiency of sanitation services in a region. This work aimed to evaluate the use of Brazilian Information and Communication Technologies, Tabnet DATASUS, of the Ministry of Health, and the National Information System on Sanitation, from the Ministry of Cities available for the management of sanitation, based on the variation of health indicators, infant mortality rate and the specific mortality coefficient for intestinal infectious diseases aged 0 to 4 years, in the Brazilian states, from 2000 to 2014, regarding the evolution of coverage and access to sanitation services (Water and Sewage). The results obtained allowed to verify the interrelationship of sanitation conditions and health indicators in this study. In general, the regression of the infant mortality index and the specific mortality coefficient were observed as sanitation coverage was expanded. Some results of the epidemiological indicators did not follow this tendency, and this fact may be related to the underreporting, or even, the non inclusion of the data in the systems. Therefore, considering the interaction between sanitation, health and water resources, it was possible to infer that the expansion of the coverage of sanitation services observed during the study period provided better conditions for protection of human and environmental health, especially considering the protection, recovery and conservation of the environment, in particular water resources.