Chagas Disease: Proposal of Health Education for Community Health Workers in the City of Petrolina, Pernambuco, Brazil

Abstract

The Education for Health at PET Work Program (PET-Health) is focused on education as a pre-supposition. Actions are directed towards to the integration of service-learning and community. Interdisciplinary principle is directed from fusion of work of graduate students, academics and professionals of health services for the benefit of strengthening primary care and health surveil-lance. This work aimed to carry out educational activities with Community Health Agents (ACS) of the health facilities of PET-health, with the theme of Chagas disease. This descriptive cross-sec-tional study was carried out from January to May 2013, and the sample consisted of 25 active ACS in six Basic Health Units in the city of Petrolina, Brazil. In spite of actuation of ACS in primary care for over 10 years, a limited knowledge has been developed about this pathology. The health edu-cation workshops developed by the PET group clarified the ACS on Chagas disease allowing them to have an expansion of knowledge about the vector, habitat Barber, transmission, clinical ma-nifestations… After the workshop, it was found that the ACS expanded their knowledge about the disease cycle, expanding the possibilities for action in the prevention of this pathology in their re-spective coverage areas. This work shows an important form of integration between education, service and community that can govern the new direction of health education.