IN-HOME INJURY PREVENTION PRACTICES FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS - THE ROLE OF PARENTAL BELIEFS, BARRIERS, AND HOUSING QUALITY

The present research was designed to contribute to the empirical liter ature on the scope and determinantss of parents' injury prevention pra ctices among families living in disadvantaged, urban areas. One hundre d fifty mothers were interviewed about their living environment when t hey brought their children (ages 6-36 months) to a hospital-based, ped iatric primary care clinic. Only 37% of respondents reported that they knew their hot water temperature was 125 degrees or less. A majority (59%) of families reported that they did not use stair gates. More tha n one fourth (27%) of respondents said they did not have smoke detecto rs. Mothers uniformly reported very favorable attitudes and beliefs an d strong support from others for in-home injury prevention practices. Factors significantly associated with the number of injury prevention practices implemented were family income, housing quality, and environ mental barriers. Instead of attempting solely to persuade parents abou t the value of injury prevention practices, skill-based interventions are needed to help parents overcome specific barriers that result from living in substandard housing and having very limited financial resou rces.