Geographical distribution and factors associated with physicians’ and nurses’ productivity in Brazilian primary healthcare

Abstract The aim of this study was to analyze the geographical distribution and factors associated with productivity in Brazilian primary health care (PHC) for the year 2023. Productivity was defined as the number of individual consultations conducted by physicians and nurses per PHC team. The average productivity in Brazil was 247.1 and 138.8 consultations per month for physicians and nurses, respectively. The Southern region (357.7), states such as Santa Catarina (411.2), Rio Grande do Sul (353.6), and Mato Grosso (339.2), and capital cities like Curitiba (413.2), Porto Alegre (377.4), and Palmas (353.8) exhibited the highest physician productivity. Positive associations with physician and nurse productivity were found for APS coverage, registered users per team, number of nursing technicians and assistants per team, and electronic health records. Municipalities with lower social vulnerability and smaller population size demonstrated higher physician productivity. Additionally, per capita APS expenditure was positively associated with physician productivity and negatively associated with nurse productivity. Collective activities such as team meetings, health education, and group consultations were positively correlated with physician and nurse productivity.