PEDIATRIC INJURIES - PARENTAL KNOWLEDGE, ATTITUDES AND NEEDS

Objective: To understand current parental knowledge, attitudes and inf ormation needs about childhood injuries. Method: Telephone survey of 1 ,516 parents in Metropolitan Toronto and Barrie. Results: Over half of the parents knew that injuries were the leading cause of death and ab out 70% believed that injuries were the most preventable of major heal th disorders. However, most parents were not particularly concerned, a nd most had limited understanding of the major causes of injury. Tradi tional modes of receiving safety information by obtaining pamphlets fr om doctors' offices or drug stores and through media coverage were pre ferred. Conclusions: Although parents were aware of the risk of genera l childhood injury, they need to be educated about specific injury ris ks and effective countermeasures. A concerted and thoughtful effort is needed to market safety information for parents in Ontario.