ABSTRACT
AIM: To investigate parents' knowledge and practice of preventive measures concerning children's home accidents, as well as the factors affecting adherence. BACKGROUND: Injuries at home constitute the majority of accidental injuries in children aged <6 years old, sometimes with devastating consequences for the child's well-being. Research has concentrated on locating the risk factors and on evaluating the effectiveness of the injury-prevention programmes, but only a few studies have focused on parental knowledge and the application of preventive measures and on how the basic risk factors correlate with parental adherence. METHODS: This was a descriptive study. A sample of 900 parents of children aged 0-6 years, who were guests of kindergartens and day nurseries of the Prefecture of Attica, Greece, and that were randomized geographically by region. Data were collected with an anonymous questionnaire between September 2006 and July 2007. RESULTS: Half of the parents had inadequate adherence to the application of preventive measures for children's accidents at home, while nearly half claimed an information deficit. Accident incidence was 36% lower than when parents claimed to adhere to preventive measures. Higher adherence had fathers of low educational level (P = 0.001), families who had < or =2 bedroom residences (P = 0.001), families who remained in block of flats (P = 0.010) as well as families who had a child with chronic illness (P = 0.012). The study concerns an urban population and does not include parents who lack a sufficient knowledge of the Greek language. CONCLUSION: Parental adherence is of primary importance for decreasing home-accident incidence. Parental education and the adherence gap needs further investigation so as to improve parental application of preventive measures.
