Health Promoting Schools and Communities - Dengue

Background:  The project "Health Promoting Schools and Communities - Dengue" was born fromobservations on social mobilization developed around schools. Based on assumptionsof Social Marketing, Behavior Change Communication and Communication forBehavior Impact design brings an approach that can be developed in inter-epidemicperiods and epidemic.

Program background: Developing relations between schools and communities to promote health through behavioral changes, for teachers, students, staff, parents and neighbors of the students.

Evaluation Methods and Results: Material and Methods We selected schools that already have a Tradition of mobilization. One or two teachersare trained. After that they make a special lecture to students about Dengue.  The class divided into groups is charged with monitoring the schools weekly.  After that studentsmonitor their own homes, discuss and provide classroom materials for health workers. The following week visit 10 houses on the street where they live and return with theresult of monitoring for the school and provide information to health workers.  The next week the parents are invited to attend a lecture on dengue and, ultimately, bring material to monitor the homes of relatives and colleagues.  Last week students are encouraged to produce a graphic piece that is treated as part of the official campaign of  the municipality.  The activities will be recorded on digital pieces to expand access.

Conclusions: Results The weekly repetition of actions ensured the assimilation of new habits and reframed the relationship between health departments and education. Approach allowed between schools and communities and awarded the work of teachers and students. The development of this project is not mandatory for schools in all municipalities, but in the last months of 2010, 47 small towns in rural areas and the metropolitan area of ​​Recife (capital of Pernambuco) with high rates of infection - about five schools permunicipality - implemented the project to prevent an epidemic of Dengue in 2011.Thus, we can say even before they are finalized reports of a Social Mobilization Planmore than 20,000 students with maximum age 13 years carried out activities thatenabled eliminated breeding sites for Aedes aegytpi the Dengue mosquito. In thesecities the majority of the breeding of Aedes aegypti are found inside the housesbecause the drinking water supply is irregular and people need to store water to survive in temperatures ranging from 27 to 35 degrees celsius.

Implications for research and/or practice:  The creative use of approaches enshrined in other countries can contribute to overcoming social mobilization concepts that are restricted to events that do not contribute to the necessary behavioral changes that allow people to live with morehealth