The use of social media in the tutorial education program in veterinary medicine as an instrument for the dissemination of health education

Abstract

This study reports activities developed by the Veterinary Medicine Tutorial Education Program (PET Veterinary Medicine group) at the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ) during the COVID-19 pandemic. This health crisis scenario has created the need to reinvent, develop, and expand pedagogical practices to disseminate health-related information to control diseases, maintain extension activities, and provide continuing education. Students were divided into pairs or trios to choose Health Education topics and create card or reel publications on PET Instagram page. Allied with this, Information and Communication Technology was used in this process to produce educational podcasts related to mental health and safety in food acquisition, preparation, and consumption. Before publishing posts, reels, or podcast episodes, group members discussed the subject with the supervisor for suggestions and corrections. Publications on Instagram® were made weekly, with a selection of pandemic-related health topics for podcasts. The group members were responsible for inviting guests, conducting interviews, editing the episodes, and publishing them. It was possible to determine the reach of publications on the Instagram® platform using its tools. This study revealed that the primary audience for the publications consisted of young women. Furthermore, the main cities of the users who viewed the page were Rio de Janeiro, Seropédica, and Nova Iguaçu. The PET Veterinary Medicine group produced and published two podcast themes related to health education. These themes were: "The Veterinary Doctor and Christmas Dinner: What Do They Have to Do with Each Other?" and "Mental Health and Challenges of Remote Teaching". During the analyzed period, it was observed that the first podcast obtained 108 reproductions, while the second reached 59 reproductions. The project allowed the dissemination of essential public health topics in an innovative way, contributing to health education and continued interaction between UFRRJ, its students, the teaching staff, and society.