Home Safety Assessment among households with children in the Texas Rio Grande Valley

Purpose: To assess home safety in households with low-income children in the Rio Grande Valley.

Background: Young children are at high risk of home-related injuries. Unintentional childhood injury is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity for children ages 1-4 in the United States. The Rio Grande Valley in South Texas has the highest concentration of colonias along the United States-Mexico border. Colonias are unincorporated settlements in which many people live in impoverished conditions.

Methods: This was a cross-sectional, non-randomized pilot study using survey-based responses. The sample consisted of 60 colonia households with children less than 6 years of age in Hidalgo County. Trained promotoras identified and administered the survey to parents.

Results: Approximately 80% of the households had one or two children less than 12 years of age. Ninety percent of the children's parents considered that injury prevention was important. However, 24 families (40%) did not use electrical outlet plugs; 63% did not have smoke detectors; 80% did not have fire extinguishers; and 45% did not have stove guards. The number of home hazards ranged from 2 to 14 out of 24 possible hazards (mean=6.78, SD=2.9). Almost 20% of the households were exposed to 10 or more hazards.

Conclusions: This pilot study suggests that the colonia population at the border is at risk of unintentional injuries due to inadequate home safety practices. There is a need to promote home safety through educational interventions for children and their families in the Texas-Mexico border colonias.