Post-graduate performance in public health and SUS development: is there a relationship?

Abstract

This essay asks whether and to what extent the stricto sensu graduate programs in public health contribute to the development of the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS). The hypothesis is positive, despite not supposing an obvious and spontaneous movement, as scientific evidence is never mechanically adopted; implementation is a political management act and not a simple academic consequence. The argument is that these programs are balanced between two commitments: they obey the educational logic of the highest level of higher education and the development of science and technology; but seek knowledge and qualification of the health sector. The bases that support this text are articles and reports that deal with the significance of science, technology, and innovation for world and national development; articles that deal with the job market of former graduate students; and testimonies of 16 course coordinators whose relevance is highlighted in the analysis of the work. It concludes that there is a, sometimes diffuse, sometimes concrete, effect of postgraduate courses on the performance of the SUS and the other national institutions. The contributions of doctorates, academic masters, and professional masters are different, each one is essential for the qualification of the SUS in its own way.