[Are mothers encouraged to identify the risk signs of diarrhea?]

OBJECTIVES: To acknowledge the mothers' perception of the diarrhea episode and their ability in identifying the signs of risk; to characterize, in the health services, at ambulatory level, the activities that stimulate a timely attention to the disease.METHODS: An inquiry was applied to a representative sample of 1026 children under 5 years old who live in the pilot areas of Pernambuco selected to receive interference concerning diarrhea, and an interconnected transversal study in 14 health services: 11 health centres and 3 hospitals.RESULTS: A high proportion of the mothers of children with diarrhea give importance clinical manifestations that do not allow an early identification of dehydration. Only one fourth of them mentions dehydration as a complication. The mothers perception of the episode has a striking influence on the adopted conduct, particularly in the Metropolitan Area, in which, in the absence of preoccupation, no children were taken to the physician and a significant smaller proportion received care to hydration. In the health services, in general, collective educational programs are not the routine, the consult with the physician is limited to the main complaint, there is no post-consult with the nurses nor articulation with community health agents. Besides that, half of the mothers did not know the signs of dehydration.CONCLUSIONS: The findings of both the inquiry and the evaluation of the health services showed a quite critical situation: mother's little perception of the mothers of diarrhea worsening signs, as well as the insufficiency of these services concerning educational activities towards stimulating mothers to recognize and valorize them.