DeCS 2006 Review of the Public Health Category

 

The set of terminological concepts that represented the Public Health subject area, and that, in 1986, came to constitute the DeCS Public Health category (SP), received special attention from consultants and specialists from the Faculdade de Saúde Pública of the Universidade de São Paulo.

 

The expressive changes that have been occurring these last years, with emphasis to the areas of health policies, health relations, environment and ecology, sector management and reform, financial support and administration of the health systems, brought up the need to reevaluate and update the public health terminology, which was not adequately expressing the demands coming from these changes.

 

The team from the Library of the Faculdade de Saúde Pública created the methodology and conducted the update work, under the coordination of BIREME.

 

The review occurred in the following subcategories, the top terms of three of which also have been changed:

 

- SP1: Health Administration and Planning is now called Health Policy, Planning and Management;

 

- SP2: Delivery of Health Care is now Health Care (Public Health);

 

- SP3: Demography is now Population Studies in Public Health;

 

- SP5: Epidemiology and Biostatistics has maintained its name.

 

- SP6: Nutrition has maintained its name.

 

- SP7: Health Sector Reform. This subcategory was eliminated, and its relevant descriptors were redistributed to other subcategories.

 

 

SP4: Environmental Health. This subcategory was completely revised and updated by specialists from the Pan American Center for Sanitary Engineering and Environmental Sciences (CEPIS) of the Pan American Health Organization, under the coordination of BIREME.

 

The SP8 (Disasters) and SP9 (Health Law) categories did not participate in this review process.

 

Review of SP

2005

2006

Variation

SP1

426

87

-80%

SP2

552

111

-80%

SP3

182

138

-24%

SP4

1251

2092

67%

SP5

184

135

-27%

SP6

179

153

-15%

SP7

142

0

-100%

SP Concepts

3652

3486

-5%

Total occurrences in the SP tree structure

4921

4722

-4%

   Subcategories:
                         SP1: Alterations; Review
                         SP2: Alterations; Review
                         SP3: Alterations; Review
                         SP4: Alterations
                         SP5: Alterations; Review
                         SP6: Alterations; Review
                         SP7: Alterations