AIEPI: the integrated strategy for childhood illness in Colombia and the nurse's role
- Fundamental
AIEPI is a WHO, UNICEF and PAHO strategy that checks the whole sick child, sorts the problem by colour and teaches the family how to care at home.
What it is
AIEPI (Atención Integrada a las Enfermedades Prevalentes de la Infancia, the Spanish name of IMCI) is a set of curative, preventive and promotional actions for children under five, delivered in health services, at home and in the community. WHO and UNICEF designed it, and Colombia has implemented it at national, departmental and municipal level since 1996. Its aims are to reduce child deaths, to reduce how often and how severely the common childhood illnesses strike, and to improve growth and development in the first five years. In the clinic it gives every health worker, nurses included, the same chart of procedures: assess, classify by colour, treat or refer, counsel the family and follow up. In the community it promotes key family practices that keep children healthy and help families recognise when to seek care.
Key points
- Main symptoms asked about in every child aged 2 months to 5 years: cough or difficult breathing, diarrhoea, fever, ear problems and throat problems.
- Every child is also checked for oral health, nutritional status, anaemia, signs of maltreatment, development and vaccination history.
- The community component groups its key practices into four aims: growth and development, preventing illness, care at home and seeking care outside the home.
- Examples of key practices: exclusive breastfeeding to six months, complementary feeding from six months, complete vaccination, hand washing, home accident prevention and recognising danger signs.
- The strategy starts from the idea that families and communities hold the main responsibility for caring for children, so they must be involved, not only informed.
Components
- Clinical AIEPI: the chart of procedures and the recording form used in each consultation.
- Institutional AIEPI: supplies, supervision and organisation of services so that the chart can be applied.
- Community AIEPI: key practices taught to families, community mothers, teachers and local leaders.
- Age blocks of the chart: the pregnant woman and birth, the young infant under 2 months, and the child from 2 months to 5 years.
What it is for
- Gives nurses a shared, structured way to find the sick child who needs urgent care.
- Turns every visit, even for a minor problem, into a check of nutrition, development, vaccination and safety.
- Links the clinic with the home through counselling, clear return signs and follow-up visits.
In nursing practice
- The nurse applies the nursing process inside AIEPI: data collection and analysis, nursing diagnosis, planning, implementation, evaluation and follow-up actions, including the home visit.
- Use the recording form during the consultation and circle the signs found; the form guides the classification.
- A green classification is not a reason to rush: it is the moment to teach prevention, feeding and development.
- Before the family leaves, check that the carer can repeat the home care and the signs for returning at once.
- Schedule the follow-up visit that the chart indicates and record it.
Common mistakes
- Classifying before completing the whole assessment.
- Stopping at the first problem found and missing nutrition, vaccination or maltreatment.
- Choosing a lower row when a sign of a higher (red) row is present.
- Telling the family 'come back if it gets worse' without naming the specific danger signs.
- Referring a child urgently without first giving the pre-referral care the chart indicates, per institutional protocol.
Test yourself
Think of the answer, then tap the question to see it.
What do the red, yellow and green colours mean in an AIEPI chart?
Red means urgent referral or hospital care; yellow means specific treatment and follow-up; green means home care with counselling.
If a child has signs from two rows of the same chart, which classification is chosen?
Only one, the most severe. The chart is read from the top (red) row down.
What are the five main symptoms asked about in a sick child aged 2 months to 5 years?
Cough or difficult breathing, diarrhoea, fever, ear problems and throat problems.
What are the three components of the AIEPI strategy?
Strengthening health systems and services, improving health workers' skills, and improving family and community practices.
Elsewhere in DurgiPedia
Connections
Educational content for students; it does not replace your institution's protocols, supervised clinical training or a prescriber's order. Dose-calculation examples use made-up numbers: they are educational, not a clinical order.
Sources: Componente comunitario de la estrategia AIEPI: guía para referentes y coordinadores locales (Ministerio de la Protección Social de Colombia / Organización Panamericana de la Salud, 2010); AIEPI: Guía del facilitador clínico (Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social de Colombia / Organización Panamericana de la Salud, 2012); Manual clínico para el aprendizaje de AIEPI en enfermería: cuaderno de trabajo (Organización Panamericana de la Salud, 2009); Cuadro de procedimientos AIEPI (Atención Integrada a las Enfermedades Prevalentes de la Infancia) (Ministerio de Salud y Protección Social de Colombia, 2016).
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Representative model, for educational purposes only.