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Abstract #157884

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V. Suzanne Morton, MBA, Program Dept., Safe Kids Worldwide, 1301 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite 1000, Washington, DC 20004, 202-662-4476, smorton@safekids.org, Aliya Quraishi, MPH, AmericaShare, 15 West 26th St., 11th floor, New York, NY 10010, and Dana Markow, PhD, Harris Interactive, 161 Sixth Avenue, New York, NY 10013.

Background: Safe Kids Worldwide conducted a national, multi-faceted drowning prevention program for National Safe Kids Week 2006, its annual educational campaign on childhood injury. Drowning is the second leading cause of accidental injury death to children ages 14 and under in the U.S., with 761 deaths in 2004. Development: This national drowning prevention campaign integrated 6 critical components: a research study, a media campaign, community educational events, a retail program, an advertising program and government relations. The research assessed parents' knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors concerning pool and spa safety. Messages were shaped, and an educational kit was developed for local Safe Kids coalitions. Safe Kids worked with parent advocate, Nancy Baker, and both House and Senate members to develop new pool safety legislation. A water safety website was developed. Implementation: Safe Kids held a news conference with speakers Representative Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (D-Fla.) and Former Secretary of State James Baker, who lost his granddaughter to drowning. Safe Kids released research results. 316 local Safe Kids held over 840 educational events. Safe Kids participated in a Senate hearing on pool safety. Television advertising ran on Turner networks. Evaluation: Bills were introduced in the House and Senate, with passage in the Senate and near-passage in the House. More than 1.3 billion pool and spa safety messages were delivered through media stories, Turner advertising, retail activity, and coalition activity. A pre- and post-Safe Kids Week parents survey showed some increase in safety knowledge and attitudes; behaviors did not change.

Learning Objectives:

• Develop a multi-faceted program for drowning prevention using research, media, advertising, community events, and legislation.
• List pool and spa safety tips for parents, caregivers, and pool owners.
• List pool and spa safety measures that should be included in model state and local legislation.

Keywords: Injury Prevention, Children

Related Web page: www.usa.safekids.org/water

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? Yes

Name of Organization	Clinical/Research Area	Type of relationship
Johnson & Johnson	n/a	Financial sponsor of injury prevention educational program unrelated to J&J products

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

• Slides (pdf) or Handout
• Multimedia recording