PUBLIC ORAL HEALTH SERVICES: IMPACT CAUSED BY THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

OBJECTIVE: Describe the oral health services offered by the Unified Health System in the Northern macro-region of Minas Gerais, Brazil, during the COVID-19 pandemic. STUDY DESIGN: Observational, cross-sectional and descriptive study. Data collection between August and September 2020 through the completion of online questionnaires by oral health managers. After collection, data were transferred to SPSS® (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences for Windows). The calculation of the weighted average prevalence of COVID-19 was carried out among the municipalities that participated in this study (mean = 0.0058; SD: 0.0049). RESULTS: This study found that all included municipalities suspended elective treatments and maintained emergency dental care. In 62.5% of the municipalities, oral health professionals had been contaminated by COVID-19. Oral health teams implemented specific interventions, with the most frequent being tele-orientation (74.7%), the use of sanitary barriers (72%), and telemonitoring (68%). At the beginning of the pandemic, 62.5% of the municipalities lacked personal protective equipment. CONCLUSION: It was found that the COVID-19 pandemic impacted the supply of dental services in Northern Minas Gerais due to the suspension of elective care, contamination of professionals, lack of personal protective equipment, and development of new interventions. FUNDING: FAPEMIG, CNPq e CAPES.