REMOTE SERVICE CORNER

of home visitors from Valença (PI), Maísa Ferreira da Silva created the “Remote Service Corner” (Cantinho do Atendimento Remoto), a playful space decorated with a rug, drawings, toys, and activities made with recyclable material where the team would record videos and make video calls with the children and families assisted in the social program. However, this strategy only reached the group of families that have cell phones.

After four months of having no contact with the families lacking communication means, and being faced with the need to reintegrate them into the social program, the team developed an interactive booklet. The team prepared the booklet's contents and layout themselves and included photos of each home visitor to reaffirm the link between the home visitors, caregivers, and children.

Initially aimed at the most vulnerable group, the team managed to obtain resources to print more booklets, distributing them to all the social program participants. Besides the booklet, the kit contained materials for making toys and carrying out the activities.

Marilene Carvalho Da Rocha Program: Criança Feliz City: Monte do Carmo - Tocantins (TO)

From the beginning of the pandemic, Marilene Carvalho da Rocha (home visitor in Monte do Carmo/TO) realized that she would have to find a new way to pass the activities on to the 25 children and expectant mothers that she assisted in the visitation program.

After researching early childhood content, she made an individual plan for every expectant mom and child under her care, adapting the activities to videos and audio messages sent through an app. Every week, in addition to video calls, Marilene recorded a video with activities, guidelines, and child development goals. For families with no internet access, the activities were carried out in person, always respecting the biosafety protocols and taking all the necessary precautions.

Maísa Ferreira da Silva

Program: Criança Feliz

City: Valencia - Piauí (PI)

To encourage caregivers and children to watch and carry out the activities proposed by the team

Among the proposed activities, there were shape matching games (made with recyclable material) using geometric shapes, number sequences, and color identification games with bottle caps. “The kids, even the smallest ones, loved it when we called,” said Marilene.

Contact, even if virtual, was also important for the caregivers, who felt isolated and unattended due to the pandemic and always asked when face-to-face visits would start again.

The home visitor created a conversation group in the app to encourage caregivers to share their experiences, but adherence was low, and the group was dissolved. Marilene believes that caregivers felt embarrassed when giving feedback on the proposed activities. "They sent me videos, photos, and recorded audio, but all in private mode."

In her activity as a home visitor, Marilene also attended to expectant mothers, many of whom were apprehensive about COVID-19. After advice from her supervisor, she took online courses on coronavirus-related care that expectant mothers should adopt. “Many pregnant women asked us how they could protect their babies from the virus, and the courses gave us all the information we needed to reassure them,” she explained.