Abstract:

The discipline of Practice in Public Health in Nutrition (PPHN), is taught at UFPB in Basic Health Units (BHU), ranging from simple care such as blood pressure assessment, even complex procedures like organ transplants. The PPHN in a face-to-face perspective aims at (i) the diagnosis of the main health problems, (ii) the identification of risk factors, (iii) the recognition of health and nutrition interventions, (iv) diagnosis of the functioning of the health service (v) protection and health recovery actions, (vi) planning and implementation of educational activities and (vii) home visits. With the COVID19 pandemic, there was a need to completely change these face-to-face meetings to distance meetings. The “new normal” created hitherto unimaginable challenges, not only for the Brazilian SUS, but for Public Health on a global level, due to change in the habits of interpersonal and institutional relationships that were routine until then, which imposed new practices via digital media, where the population and the state was not prepared. Humanity, after more than 100 years of the last pandemic, (the Spanish Flu, 1918), had challenges of re-education and re-awareness of professors and students in universities and society, especially in basic health care, in a diligent, agile and effective way, causing a positive echo, despite the contingencies, in contemporary post-COVID19 society. Thus, this work aims to report all the experience of changes lived in learning an eminently practical discipline to a discipline fully performed remotely. Four students were enrolled in this PPHN class, who were initially present in the classes through Google Meet and then made some visits to the family health unit called “Uniting Lives”. Altogether there are 15 meetings, of which 13 were held remotely and 2 were held in person (visiting the BHU). The methodology used in remote teaching involved the discussion of clinical cases online, the simulation of home visits to patients, availability of content using videos, as well as the realization of an inverted classroom. As a result, the students developed materials to be presented in video conference as if they were in contact with the unit's users. Presentations were made related to the Food Guide for the Brazilian Population, preparation of material for a home visit to a bedridden, elderly patient with comorbidities, and preparation of material for the health education of community agents regarding children's growth curves. There were positive testimonials from students involved in the new format, such as the possibility of developing home office learning, the involvement of people from other universities in participating in the construction of knowledge and the active participation of students in this construction. Some negative aspects can also be mentioned, such as the fact of not being able to have face-to-face contact with the UBS user and the tiredness of spending long hours on the computer. We can conclude that, despite the challenges faced, remote learning brings its positive aspects, which contributed greatly to the successful experience in the discipline of Practice in Public Health in Nutrition. And as an eminently practical discipline, at first we feared that the remote system would not work. However, we found that it was possible to contribute to the health education of these students, as well as to the health unit that we supported in the upcoming period.

Keywords:

Practice in Public Health, Nutrition, Basic Health Units, New Practices.