Caregiver Education on Reducing Unintentional Injuries in Infants 0-12 Months

Abstract

Purpose. This quality improvement project functioned to determine whether an educational, evidence-based handout on infant injury prevention (0-12 months) increased caregiver knowledge on realistic, affordable ways to increase safety for the infant in their home environment. Background. The infant period, from 0-12 months of age, is a time of rapid growth and physiological changes, with a high susceptibility to injuries. Preventable injury is the leading cause of death for children in the United States, accounting for up to 20 deaths every day and more than 225,000 hospital admissions, 9 million emergency room visits, and 2 million outpatient visits annually. The most effective way to prevent injuries from occurring is to educate caregivers early on easy ways to keep their infants safe. Methods. The design of this project was a single site, pretest-posttest, quantitative study. The study used a pre-intervention and post-intervention survey to determine success of educational session for caregivers on infant injury prevention. Caregivers included were those of 0-12 month infant(s), English Speaking, and patients at Papago Buttes Pediatrics. A convenience sample of 10 caregivers were recruited of those presenting for well-child checks at the clinic. Descriptive statistics and a Paired T-Test were used to analyze the data collected. Results. 10 caregivers consented to participate in and completed the pre-intervention survey, 5–10-minute educational session, and post-intervention survey. Statistical analysis concluded that the use of the handout was statistically significant in increasing caregiver knowledge on injury prevention in infants 0-12 months. Conclusion. The evidence-based educational handout on infant injury prevention was effective in increasing caregiver knowledge. The intervention proved to be successful at Papago Buttes Pediatric Center and can be applied in future well child exams for this clinic’s patient population.