Intervenção assistida por animais no quotidiano de cuidado à criança com transtorno do espectro autista e sua família: contribuições para a promoção da saúde e a enfermagem

Abstract

The daily life of children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and their family is surrounded by singularities, adaptations, (re) discoveries that permeate the scenes of life, providing more or less healthy scenarios. ASD is known to be an invasive neurodevelopmental disorder that has been increasing in the last few years. According to international estimates, ASD affects 1 in 45 children with persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction in multiple contexts and restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior, interests or activities. ASD is a condition with unique characteristics, it is necessary to look for ways of caring that meet the needs presented by this public and enable sensitive care, providing better quality of life for these children and their families. In this case, we sought a care strategy that meets the singularities and sensitivity that a child with ASD demands, which is the Animal Assisted Intervention (IAA). IAA consists of an intervention with clear objectives and process evaluation, conducted by health professionals who use the animal as an integral part of the therapeutic process. We seek to answer the following research question: How is the daily life of children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder and their family who experience Animal Assisted Intervention and what is its relationship with Health Promotion? This study aimed to understand the daily lives of children with ASD and their families experiencing Animal Assisted Intervention and its relationship with Health Promotion. This is a qualitative, descriptive and exploratory approach research, having as method Holistic Multiple Case Study, based on Michel Maffesoli's theoretical framework of Comprehensive and Everyday Sociology. The setting of this study was a Private Clinic in the Southern of Brazil. The participants were children's family members with ASD who are in the IAA and professionals who took care of the child and his family in the clinic, totaling 16 participants. The data production period occurred from September to December 2018 and was made an open interview, field diary and photographic record analysis as sources of evidence. The data analysis was through the Thematic Content Analysis proposed by Bardin with the following steps: pre-analysis, material exploration and treatment of results, inference and interpretation. The ethical precepts were respected according to Resolution 466/2012. The results emerged from five categories evidenced in the study, allowing the understanding of the phenomenon that occurred retrospectively, going back in the memory of the study participants when remembering the first signs until the diagnosis of Autistic Spectrum Disorder, aligned with the coexistence and exclusion in the daily life of the child with ASD, the first category being analyzed. The second category evidenced the family member who presents himself as Being a caregiver of a child with Autistic Spectrum Disorder and the daily life of family and professionals. The third category presents the family and child life with Autistic Spectrum Disorder in Animal Assisted Therapy. The fourth category introduced us to the Potencies of Animal Assisted Intervention in the daily lives of children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder and their family. The fifth category made known the dynamics of the Animal Assisted Intervention sessions with children with ASD condition. The results of this study lead us to the need for a larger view when addressing the child with ASD and their family. The need to follow the families from the first signs of atypical development of the child, through the diagnosis, to the guidance for the most appropriate way to perform care, including the whole family group, is evident. In this context, the IAA has been shown to be affective and therefore effective for the well-being of children and families by outlining a way of caring that integrates animals and respects the ways of being, feeling and living with children in ASD situations. collaborating to promote a healthier daily life.