Increasing Caregiver Knowledge of Water Safety Through an Evidence-Based Presentation

Abstract

Purpose. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to determine if providing evidence-based education on drowning risk and water safety strategies to pediatric caregivers of children ages 1 to 4 years would lead to increased caregiver knowledge of pediatric drowning risk and water safety at Cigna Medical Group Paseo.Background. Drowning remains the leading cause of death by unintentional injury in children ages 1 to 4 years in the United States. Although there has been a decrease in drowning fatalities nationally, rates for Arizona resident children under the age of 5 years have increased from 3.3 deaths per 100,000 in 2019 to 6.6 deaths per 100,000 in 2020. Drowning is a preventable injury that requires multiple layers of protection. Providing caregivers with frequent and high-quality education on water safety strategies is a crucial step toward decreasing the risk of drowning in the pediatric population. Methods. This project utilized a quantitative, pretest/posttest, single-group design to assess for knowledge change before and after a short evidence-based educational intervention provided to caregivers of children ages 1 to 4 years. Participants were recruited from a convenience sample of 5 caregivers who presented to Cigna Medical Group Paseo. Results were analyzed using descriptive statistics and a paired t-test. Results. A total of 5 eligible caregivers chose to participate in the educational intervention. All 5 participants completed the pretest, educational presentation, and posttest. Data analysis revealed a statistically significant increase in caregiver knowledge of drowning risk and water safety strategies following the intervention. All participants reported that they planned to implement the water safety strategies presented and found the intervention to be useful, clear, and relevant to their role as a caregiver. Conclusion. The evidence-based presentation effectively increased caregiver knowledge of drowning risk and water safety interventions as evidenced by an increase in scores from the pretest to the posttest. The positive outcomes of this project show that this type of educational intervention results in increased caregiver knowledge and may potentially lead to decreased drowning risk for young children at the clinic site.