Desenvolvimento e avaliação de um jogo educacional sobre a promoção dos cuidados primários ao recém-nascido prematuro

Abstract

The World Health Organization (WHO) (1977, 2012) defines preterm newborns as those born with a gestational age (GA) before 37 weeks. In 2024, in Brazil, there were 19,704 cases of infant deaths due to preventable causes, including prematurity. It is expected that by 2030 there will be no mortality of children under 5 years of age and neonatal mortality due to preventable causes. Given this context, the following question arose: how can an educational game aimed at promoting primary care for premature newborns contribute to improving the care provided to these individuals and their families by healthcare professionals? To answer this question, this study aims to understand the contributions of an educational game aimed at promoting primary care for premature infants and their families provided by healthcare professionals. The theoretical chapter initially addresses essential care for premature infants, encompassing their physiological, growth, and developmental needs. It emphasizes the importance of family involvement in premature infant care, highlighting how family support affects the baby's development and health. It also stresses the relevance of education and ongoing training for healthcare professionals who care for premature infants, revealing shortcomings in the teaching-learning process. Furthermore, it presents general care-educational technologies related to the topic and their contributions, emphasizing the importance of using educational games in the health education process. The methodology consists of empirical research, conducted with professionals representing the following categories: one from medicine, two from nursing, and one from physiotherapy in the municipality of Fortaleza-CE, who possess theoretical and practical knowledge and who provide and/or have provided care to premature infants, their parents, and/or caregivers. The educational product developed is an educational game for promoting primary care for premature infants and their families provided by healthcare professionals. The study's results highlight the acceptance of the technology through the application of an online form based on the TAM model. After analyzing the acceptance, perceived usefulness, and perceived ease of use through evaluation by healthcare professionals with theoretical and practical knowledge, and who have experienced or are experiencing care for premature infants, their parents, and/or caregivers, this study demonstrates the effectiveness of using an educational game to promote primary care for premature infants and their families provided by healthcare professionals. Therefore, this study allows us to infer that the use of a digital educational game on home-based primary care for premature infants and their parents and/or caregivers is effective for the health education process.