Diagnóstico precoce da perda auditiva na infância: elaboração de um material educativo para enfermeiros da atenção primária à saúde

Abstract

Introduction: Early intervention in cases of hearing loss is essential to minimize its impacts. Considering that the nurse’s role in Primary Health Care (PHC) includes the child health consultation, which assesses children during their first two years of life, this professional can be a key ally in the early diagnosis of hearing impairments. Thus, promoting the knowledge of nurses working in PHC about this topic is a strategy that can contribute to early diagnosis and intervention, consequently minimizing the negative consequences of hearing loss in childhood and improving healthcare. Objective: To develop educational material to guide nurses on the early diagnosis and intervention of hearing loss in childhood. Methodology: The study was divided into four stages: (1) evaluation of the knowledge of nurses and nursing students about hearing loss in childhood, through the application of a questionnaire consisting of 20 questions divided into four domains; (2) development of educational material to guide nurses on the early diagnosis and intervention of hearing loss in childhood; (3) validation of the material by expert judges (speech therapists) selected through snowball sampling and analysis of their Lattes Curriculum, who answered the Educational Content Validation Instrument in Health (IVCES); and (4) validation of the material by the target audience (nurses from PHC), through the Suitability Assessment of Materials (SAM) questionnaire. Results: In the first stage, 52 individuals participated (32 nurses and 20 nursing students). There was no significant difference between the groups in terms of total questionnaire scores or in the results of the different domains (p > 0.05). In the second stage, an e-book consisting of 9 domains and 22 pages was developed. Ten audiologist judges completed the IVCES, and the global content validity index of the e-book was 0.99. In the evaluation by the target audience, ten nurses completed the SAM, which resulted in a final score of 89.75%, indicating that the material was considered adequate by the evaluators. Conclusion: This dissertation offers a relevant contribution both to professional practice and nursing education by providing a validated educational tool capable of supporting nurses in the early detection of childhood hearing loss. It also highlights the need to develop strategies within undergraduate nursing education that focus on hearing health.