Sala de espera: educação em saúde em um ambulatório de gestação de alto risco

Current paper identifies the needs of pregnant females with regard to themes within health education when they are waiting in a high-risk hospital outpatient clinic. Through a descriptive, qualitative and field studies and employing Bardin´s thematic contents, thirty-five pregnant females participated on the occasion of their pre-natal visit to the doctor. Six categories emerged: perception of discomfort while waiting; feeling of abandonment while waiting; concern on return to work; reference to physical and emotional symptoms; participation or not in health education; suggestion to the development of educational activities while waiting; offering of meals while waiting. When needs are identified, health education should optimize waiting time prior to pre-natal service.