Pediatric patient literacy and storytelling

10.30207/AHLA.202312.0012

Maria Cristiane Barbosa Galvão；Isabela Dallasta Calandrin；Pamela Heloisy Rodrigues

caregivers ； children ； communication ； language development ； literacy ； storytelling ； teenagers

The Proceeding of the 9th AHLA International Health Literacy Conference: Health Literacy and Social Resilience

2023（2023 / 12 / 01）

12 - 12

英文

Background: Patients may experience idleness prior to outpatient care or when they undergo long hospital stays. Objectives: In order to use idle time, increase happiness, well-being, resilience, and health literacy of pediatric patients (children and adolescents up to 18 years old), a storytelling initiative was developed in the outpatient clinic and ward of a pediatric hospital and also in a YouTube channel. Methods: Protocols were developed for storytelling in face-to-face and digital modes. For both modalities, it was necessary: the selection of suitable stories, including stories about resilience, cultural, religious and bodily diversity, friendship, race and gender equality (Sexist, racist, violent and white superiority stories are not selected in the project); training the team of storytellers; creation of visual patterns for clothing and identification of storytellers. For face-to-face storytelling, a story menu was developed so that children can select the stories they want to hear; a hand hygiene methodology was established; and a schedule, with days and times for storytelling. For storytelling in the digital modality, the following processes were developed: scenography, recording and editing of stories in a standardized way; creating a YouTube channel; dissemination of stories on social networks. Results: Storytelling engages children, adolescents and their families emotionally and cognitively. Face-to-face contact, through storytelling, expands the possibilities of language and vocabulary development, expands communication, human relationships, imagination, generates good feelings and good emotions within the health unit. The availability of the stories told on the YouTube channel makes it possible for children and adolescents to review the stories at any time. Between 2018 and 2023, our initiative assisted 2,540 in person and 7,518 on YouTube. Conclusion: We hypothesized that the first steps towards health literacy can start with listening to stories in health units, when the patient can establish an affective and cognitive relationship between health and information.