Ações de educação em saúde da rede pública de saúde: percepção de mães do município de Diamantina, Minas Gerais

Abstract

Despite the public policies aimed at child health have contributed to improved nutrition and the decline in infant mortality, paradoxically, tooth decay remains a persistent problem in Brazilian children. It is noteworthy that the health education initiatives developed in Primary Health Care (PHC) are considered key strategies of policies related to children's health and are associated with the integrality of health care. In this context, the objective of this study was to understand the perception of mothers using PHC in relation to health education actions developed by the health services. It was used the qualitative method, based on the grounded theory, carried out through semistructured interviews and assuming as a theoretical framework the attributes derived from the PHC. A total of 19 women participated in the study, of which 7 were pregnant and 12 were mothers of children under one-year-old, assisted by health teams from Diamantina, Minas Gerais. The material produced by the interviews was transcribed, comprehensively and exhaustively read and written memorandum for the elaboration of the interpretive assumptions and the initial categories. Following, we selected the significant statements that would be pertinent to the objective of the study and represented the quotation. The second step was to condense these lines according to their essence (codes), to later interpret them in subcategories. From these subcategories emerged the categories that were grouped into the main categories (themes). To maximize the validity of the analysis, three researchers coded the data independently and joint interpretive discussions were performed. As a result, the main themes "Care" were found, which groups the reported practices and past experiences of the interviewees, which qualify the care with their children and "Health Services Organization", which was analyzed from the viewpoint of access and strategies for the care. We concluded that there is difficulty of access to dental services in the public sector of the city and that health education actions directed to the subjects of this study, when they occur, do not have relevant adhesion because they do not consider the social and cultural competences of these women. These findings supported the elaboration of a technical report for the workers and managers of the municipality (technical product) that aimed to socialize the results of the research and propose strategies to solve the problems observed.