HEALTH STATIONS PROGRAM IN THE CITY OF BUENOS AIRES

Background and objectives: As a response to the growing burden of non-communicable diseases (NCD), in 2012 the Health Stations Program (HS) was created by the Directorate-General of Health Development of the Deputy Mayor's Office of the Buenos Aires City Government. Among its objectives are the detection of NCD risk factors and the promotion of healthy lifestyles in children and adults. It is available to the community free of charge through 40 health promotion points located within Buenos Aires City. The object of this paper is to describe the scope of the HS Program through a series of indicators. Methods: Cross-sectional study based on data from HS user database. Results: Since its start in 2012, a total of 1 044 641 people visited the HS 3.4 times on average, totalizing 3 937 422 sessions (3 593 454 health checkups and 693 820 nutritional counselings). Fifty- six percent of users were female, 44% were male, and 56% were over 45 years of age. Fifty-six percent resided in Buenos Aires City and 27% in Buenos Aires Province. During the past year 13 300 new monthly contacts were made on average, and an estimated one out of five Buenos Aires City residents have attended HS at least once. Blood pressure controls were carried out on 762 124 people, glycemia on 248 083 people and body weight controls on 346 278 people. Among the latter, over half (56.2%) were overweight, this being the principal reason for consultation among nutritional counseling users. Outdoor gym classes are offered within the HS premises, as well as other programs such as Healthy Awakening, consisting of cognitive stimulation exercises and physical activity for senior citizens, and Game Zones, where physical activities for children are offered. Furthermore, conferences open to the community have convened 16 200 people. Conclusions: The HS Program enables access to the control of a series of NCD risk factors in the population and constitutes an original strategy for promoting healthy lifestyles.