Students point of view of their professional preparation to practice in the Brazilian Universal Health Care System

Objective: To identify, and describe the point of views of healthcare students from the "Federal University of Santa Catarina - Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina (UFSC) regarding their professional preparation to practice in the "Brazilian Universal Health Care System - Sistema Unico de Saude (SUS), the participation of the general population in health care issues and their understanding of the patients bill of rights. Methods: Data were collected using a structuralized questionnaire to complement other qualitative data from 145 undergraduate healthcare students. Results: Findings suggested changes in the profile of the students concerning the healthcare core curriculum. Students reported interest in working for the Universal Health Care System, but they expressed that salary paid by this public health care system may be a disincentive. They perceived that the people have limited financial resources and do not understand the patients' bill of rights. Students support humanization of health care services. Conclusions: Students did not see great value of the participation of the general population in health care issues or social control. This may suggest inadequate professional preparation.