Formação inicial em ciências da saúde em Angola: comparação dos perfis dos alunos de diferentes cursos (medicina, enfermagem e TDT), em diferentes níveis de ensino (básico, médio e superior)

Introduction: We describe the evolution of the training of health technicians (HT) in Angola and find that the Human Resources Development Plan (HRDP) 1997-2007 had a profound impact on the development of the training of the health workforce in Angola. This article reports on a study carried out within the scope of the preparation of the second HRDP 2013-2025 with the objective of obtaining comparable data on the profile of students who attended the different health sciences courses in Angola. Methods: The methodology was based on that used in similar studies in other Portuguese-speaking countries and in Angola in 2007. The study took place in the first four months of 2014, subcontracted to a specialized company. Data were entered in SPSS v.20 in 2014 and descriptive statistics (count, relative frequency, mean and standard deviation and medians) were calculated with SPSS v 25 during 2020. Results: The study results reveal a positive message. The students were recruited with a wide geographic base; they were satisfied with the choice of training and their performance was, in general, satisfactory, although the percentage of students in the Allied Health Sciences (AHS) with overdue subjects deserves attention. After training, they intended to settle in Angola, preferably in a hospital practice, preferably in the public network. As the public sector does not have the capacity to absorb all students, it is gratifying to note that many were open to practice in the private sector, mainly in provincial or national capitals, preferably in accumulation with public sector work. Discussion and conclusions: At the end of the cycle of the National Staff Training Plan 2013-2020, this study highlights some of the issues that will have to be addressed by training institutions in order to contribute to a balanced health workforce in Angola, with HT in quantity with the quality and distribution needed to respond to the needs of the health system and the population.