Brazil is a South American country that occupies approximately half of the continent’s landmass. The country’s population is quite diverse and has mixed races and ethnic groups. The country’s racial diversity stems from Europeans, Africans, and Amerindians. It is the fifth-largest country in the world and is also the fifth most populous country. The country has also made several improvements in its medical system. Brazil has a highly diverse population with a universal healthcare system to cater to the entire population's needs.
Brazil is one of the most populous countries globally and accounts for approximately one-third of the Latin American population. The United Nations estimated the country's population to be about 212,559,000 (Brazil, 2020). The country has a highly diverse population with 47.7% identifying as white, 7.6% as black, while the percentage of mixed races was 43.1% (“Brazil 2010 census shows changing race balance”, 2011). Like other developing countries, the young population makes up the largest population of the country. However, the trend has changed in the 21st century, where its median age has increased. The population in 2015 of children below age 13 was 23.0%, between 15 and 61 years was 69.2%, and above 65 years was 7.8%. The country’s population is somewhat uneven, with most Brazilians living within 300 km of the country’s coastline while the interior Amazon Basin is almost empty. However, the historical pattern is gradually changing with recent movements to the country’s interior.
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The healthcare system in Brazil follows a universal healthcare system where healthcare is the constitutional right of every citizen. Private institutions and the government have the responsibility of providing healthcare. Primary healthcare is the federal government’s responsibility, and individual states oversee its administration. The Unified Health System, referred to as Sistema Único de Saúde (SUS), caters to public healthcare for all Brazilian citizens and foreigners within the Brazilian territory. The national health policy was created in 1988 as a Federal Constitution that sets out the directives and principles for healthcare delivery (Castro et al., 2019). The constitution observes that the federal government's activities should focus on a multi-year plan approved by the national congress for four years. The country’s health system aims to promote health, prevent sickness, tackle serious illnesses, and treat the sick and injured.
Primary health care is also one of the main pillars of the country’s public health system. The plan used to strengthen primary healthcare is through the Family Health Program. The Ministry of Public Health introduced the program in partnership with the municipal health secretariats. Approximately 70% of the country’s population receives care from the system (Castro et al., 2019). However, those that do not want the inconveniences and queues from the public health system choose private care.
The country’s national health system faces significant problems even after operating for thirty years. The burden of infectious diseases and the risk of noncommunicable diseases place a burden on the health system. There are structural problems and disparities inherent in the SUS. The SUS program's inadequate funding has resulted in large regional disparities, where more impoverished regions with low socioeconomic populations are highly disadvantaged (Massuda et al., 2018). The country also experiences frequent political crises that impact the country’s health system.
In conclusion, Brazil’s population is highly diverse and has a universal healthcare delivery system. Brazil has a large and highly diverse population. The country’s population is unevenly distributed with very few people living in its interior Amazon basin. The country has a universal healthcare system that requires significant improvements. Improvements can be made by reducing the regional disparities in care and improving care among individuals from low socioeconomic status.
References
Brazil. (2020). United Nations. https://data.un.org/en/iso/br.html
Brazil 2010 census shows changing race balance. (2011). BBC. https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-15766840
Castro, M. C., Massuda, A., Almeida, G., Menezes-Filho, N. A., Andrade, M. V., de Souza Noronha, K. V. M., ... & Giovanella, L. (2019). Brazil's unified health system: the first 30 years and prospects for the future. The lancet , 394 (10195), 345-356. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(19)31243-7
Massuda, A., Hone, T., Leles, F. A. G., de Castro, M. C., & Atun, R. (2018). The Brazilian health system at crossroads: progress, crisis and resilience. BMJ global health , 3 (4). https://dx.doi.org/10.1136%2Fbmjgh-2018-000829
