Continuity of care for people with hypertension in primary health care: a scoping review.

OBJECTIVE: To map the evidence on continuity of care for people with systemic arterial hypertension in Primary Health Care (PHC), pointing out limitations and strategies for its implementation. METHOD: Scope review, without time limits, based on the Web of Science, PubMed, Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature, and Scientific Electronic Library Online databases. Theses and dissertations from the Brazilian Digital Library and the Catalog of the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel were included. The selection of studies was performed by two independent blind reviewers, and any disagreements were resolved by a third reviewer, resulting in a corpus of 32 studies. Data extraction was performed based on an adaptation of the JBI instrument, covering information on the studies, methodology, and recommendations for continuity of care. The data were organized in an Excel spreadsheet and analyzed thematically, being interpreted in light of the dimensions of continuity of care. RESULTS: Continuity of care in hypertension in PHC improves blood pressure control, reducing morbidity, mortality, and health costs. Patients followed by the same health professional show better adherence to treatment and quality of life. Limitations were identified, such as staff turnover, poor communication between services, and the absence of consolidated care flows. Strategies include strengthening teamwork, interprofessional coordination, the use of shared electronic medical records, and the adoption of formal referral and counter-referral flows. CONCLUSIONS: Implementing team-based care and promoting the sharing of activities among professionals are strategies for achieving continuity of care.