Supply of enteral diets in the Espirito Santo state public health system in Brazil

Background: Brazil includes food as a social right, making the State responsible to the courts for the sufficient and adequate supply of enteral food. Objectives: to evaluate the supply of enteral diets in pharmacies in the state of Espirito Santo. Methods: to do this, we used the forms filled out by patients or legal representatives, containing medical records, to analyze the nutritional and social profiles of the users over two years, and the compliance of the administrative processes with the ordinance that instituted enteral food supplies was verified. Results: the sample was comprised of 204 patients receiving enteral nutrition, and the administrative procedures required to supply these patients were surveyed in seven (7/9) pharmacies. The data showed that the most common group was that of women (51 %), who were white (51 %), legally represented (91 %), and 73.5 years old (11 to 109 years). Information regarding missing anthropometric data, use of terms and calculations for obtaining enteral food other than those recommended, incomplete documents, alterations to the physical examinations suggestive of error, and nonobservance of inclusion and exclusion criteria were collected for this study. Conclusions: this study revealed that there were gaps in the process of enteral diet supply by the Espírito Santo pharmacies, both concerning compliance with the protocol and patient follow-up by the professional who assists both the patient and the pharmacist who provides the input.