Vigilância de crianças com risco para o desenvolvimento neuropsicomotor: um estudo de intervenção com mães

Abstract

Introduction: Child stimulation is fundamental for the child in the early years, due to brain plasticity and the possibility of reversing delays. In this sense, guiding families is one of the recommendations of Integrated Management of Childhood Illness. Objective: To analyze the effectiveness of an educational intervention with mothers for the stimulation of children under two years of age at risk for neuropsychomotor development. Methodology: a pre-after study with a mixed approach, conducted with 52 mothers of children enrolled in Reference Centers for Early Childhood Education in Cuité-PB. The educational intervention took place in 2018 in three stages: the first one was the elaboration and validation of a structured instrument containing 22 questions for the evaluation of maternal knowledge on child development and stimulation. An educational primer on infant stimulation for mothers was also elaborated; In the second stage the educational intervention was carried out, applying the pre-test; and in the third stage, the maternal knowledge was reassessed, re-applying the same instrument used in the second stage, in addition to an interview with 12 mothers. For quantitative and qualitative analysis, descriptive and inferential statistics were used with non-parametric tests and thematic analysis, respectively. Approval of the Research Ethics Committee under CAAE nº 82127817.3.0000.5188. Results: There was an increase in maternal knowledge scores from 5.77 ± 1.85 to 18.60 ± 1.94 (p <0.001). Regarding the qualitative aspects, the categories lacked professional orientation as fragilities for the infantile stimulation, before the intervention; maternal overload and paternal absence in the stimulation of the child, as obstacles to the stimulation; the use of active methodology and educational materials were considered facilitators to improve knowledge; changes in attitudes and socialization of information with other mothers; maternal empowerment to identify changes and autonomy to seek new ways to promote child development. Final considerations: The educational intervention proved to be effective, as it contributed to the improvement of maternal knowledge about the development and stimulation of children at risk, as well as favoring changes in attitudes at home. However, weaknesses were observed in the knowledge of children's communication domain, and it is recommended that educational interventions be continued with mothers, relatives and caregivers to improve the healthy development of children.