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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Karen L. Benjamin, MPH, CHES and Cristine Delnevo, PhD, MPH. School of Public Health, University of Medicine & Dentistry of New Jersey, 335 George Street, Suite 2200, Liberty Plaza, New Brunswick, NJ 08903, 732-235-8269, KBenjamin99@aol.com
The purpose of this pilot evaluation study was to determine the effectiveness of a car seat check up program designed to improve participants ability to correctly install and use their child safety seat. This study used a chi-square analysis to compare pretest data collected at an existing permanent car seat check up event with posttest data collected 4-6 weeks later. Of the fourteen areas assessed for errors in use and installation, a decrease in posttest errors was shown in all except one, which remained the same. Statistically significant improvements were found in 6 of the 14 areas assessed. Despite numerous limitations in carrying out the check up program itself and the follow up portion of the study, the findings indicate that the program can be effective and that further study is warranted on this topic. Future research should address some of the limitations and study the difference in attitudes and behaviors between subjects at permanent vs. random sites. Another area needing more research is the inclusion of subjects with uninstalled seats for whom no pretest data is available—a group which comprised nearly half of all subjects initially, but whose records were unusable in analysis.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Evaluation, Injury Prevention
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.