I am very pleased to present our first issue for 2012, when, we believe, the qualification process of Saúde em Debate will be consolidated. Since 2007, when the ‘refoundation of the Centro Brasileiro de Estudos de Saúde (CEBES)’ started, we have strongly invested in the development and qualification of our editorial production.

The journal was previously published each four months, and now the issues are quarterly, which enabled to increase the number of articles in the journal, while the punctuality has been rigorously maintained. These are important aspects not only concerning the quality of the relation between the publisher and readers and associates of CEBES, but also regarding the aspect of indexing and journal qualification.

On the other hand, the website of CEBES (www.cebes.org.br) has been modernized to keep the debate and political discussion. It brings several articles with opinions of famous authors and videos from the CEBES Channel and informs the associates about issues of the healthcare sector, through the blog or columns like Radar in the Media, CEBES Recommends, CEBES Participates and CEBES Supports. The website has had over 40,000 monthly accesses, clearly indicating that the entity remains as an important opinion-shaping reference in healthcare policies.

The covers this year will be based on the idea of ‘culture is health’ and, for this reason, will be inspired by important regional and popular manifestations that contribute to essential experiences in life. The cover of this issue is our tribute to cordel literature.

Enjoy your reading!

Paulo Amarante

Scientific Editor

Publication Dates