Referral and Counter-Referral Policies in Public Health: Comparison Between Levels of Care in Latin América
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47606/ACVEN/PH0399Keywords:
Health policies, Referral and counter-referral, Primary care, Sustainable developmentAbstract
The purpose of the research was to comparatively analyze the public health referral and counter-referral policies in place across various countries in the region, evaluating their impact on system efficiency and the quality of healthcare delivery. The methodology adopted was a qualitative literature review, based on academic sources and official documents from international organizations. The results revealed significant regulatory disparities, operational barriers, and technological limitations that directly affect continuity of care. The conclusions highlight the need to move toward more comprehensive and sustainable public policies to ensure equitable, continuous, and high-quality care. The study aims to provide evidence for the redesign of regional strategies, promoting collaborative governance, interoperability of information systems, and the development of integrated health networks that address the structural challenges of the sector.
Downloads
References
Banco Mundial. (2022). Sistemas de Gestión de Información de Salud en el Perú. https://www.bancomundial.org/es/country/peru/publication/sistemas-de-gesti-n-de-informaci-n-de-salud-en-el-per?
BID. (2022). Mejora de la interoperabilidad regional en salud. Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo. https://www.iadb.org/es/proyecto/
Briones, T., Pico, G., & Lujan, J. (2020). Gestión por procesos para mejorar el sistema de referencias y contrareferencia de Hospitales de Guayaquil. Revista Multidiciplinar de Innovacion y Estudios Aplicados, 7. https://polodelconocimiento.com/ojs/index.php/es/article/view/3705
CEPAL. (2021). Lineamientos y propuestas para un plan de autosuficiencia sanitaria para América Latina y el Caribe. https://repositorio.cepal.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/78824669-cf45-4e27-a161-291ba645aee4/content
EsSalud. (2023). Memoria anual 2023 del consejo Nacional de Salud. Ministerio de Salud. https://www.gob.pe/institucion/minsa/informes-publicaciones/6548933-memoria-anual-2023-del-consejo-nacional-de-salud
Frenz, P., Garcia, P., Gomez, D., & Octavio, K. (2014). La reforma de los sistemas de salud y la cobertura universal de salud en América Latina. MEDICC Review, 17(1), S21–S39. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.redalyc.org/pdf/4375/437542099010.pdf
Gonzales, M. (2024). El dilema de la centralizacion o la descentralizacion de los servicios primarios de salud en el caso de transcision de los servicios de salud en Mexico. Instituto Nacional de Salud. https://www.gob.pe/institucion/ins/informes-publicaciones/4172141-boletin-ins-2023-ano-29-n-1?
Levesque, J., Harris, M., & Russell, G. (2013). Patient-centred access to health care: Conceptualising access at the interface of health systems and populations. International Journal for Equity in Health. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/236051412_Patient-centred_access_to_health_care_Conceptualising_access_at_the_interface_of_health_systems_and_populations DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/1475-9276-12-18
López, J., Pérez, D., Vargas, I., & Vázquez, L. (2021). Barreras y factores asociados al uso de mecanismos de coordinación entre niveles de atención en México Barriers. Cadernos de Saude Publica, 37(4). https://doi.org/10.1590/0102-311X00045620 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/0102-311x00045620
Mandes, H. (2013). Renewing Primary Health Care in the Americas. (Issue 4). chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://iris.paho.org/bitstream/handle/10665.2/31216/9789275131169-eng.PDF?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
MINSA. (2023). Lineamientos técnicos del sistema de referencia y contrarreferencia para redes de servicios de salud. https://www.gob.pe/institucion/minsa/informes-publicaciones/353505-lineamientos-tecnicos-del-sistema-de-referencia-y-contrarreferencia-para-redes-de-servicios-de-salud?
Mintzberg, E. (2005). Innovation in organizations from a complex adaptive. Creativity and Innovation Management, 8(1), 1–24. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://oro.open.ac.uk/2620/1/ECOsubfinal_2620.pdf
Oliveira, M., Cruz, M., Portugal, C., & Dwyer, G. (2019). Articulations between the global mental health project and the cultural aspects of care in the psychosocial care and primary health care network in Brazil. Physis, 30(2), 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0103-73312020300219 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1590/s0103-73312020300219
OMS. (2023). La OPS subraya la necesidad de priorizar la atención primaria de salud para avanzar hacia la salud universal en las Américas. https://www.paho.org/es/noticias/12-12-2024-ops-subraya-necesidad-priorizar-atencion-primaria-salud-para-avanzar-hacia
OPS. (2022). Estrategia de la organización mundial de la salud. Nucl. Phys., 13(1), 104–116. https://www.preventionweb.net/news/preliminary-report-february-6-2023-earthquakes-turkiye
OPS. (2023). Analyzing and Overcoming Access Barriers to Strengthen Primary Health Care. Pan American Health Organization. https://iris.paho.org/handle/10665.2/58876
Ramírez, L., & Humberto, J. (2020). Dos décadas de economía de la salud en Colombia. XXXVII(73), 143–165. chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://www.redalyc.org/journal/2821/282163006010/282163006010.pdf
Silva, G., Andreazza, R., & Chioro, A. (2021). Integration among national health information systems in Brazil: the case of e-SUS Primary Care. Revista de Saude Publica. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/356960291_Integration_among_national_health_information_systems_in_Brazil_the_case_of_e-SUS_Primary_Care
Starfield, B. (1999). Primary Care: Balancing Health Needs, Services, and Technology. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 282(5), 492–492. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.282.5.492 DOI: https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.282.5.492
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Luciano Huauya-Canchari, Cristian Gumercindo Medina-Sotelo
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
