Brief report: Learning to parent: A survey of parents in an urban pediatric primary care clinic

Objective: To survey parents bringing children to an urban pediatric primar y care clinic about (1) how they learned parenting skills, (2) role of the clinic in teaching parenting, (3) helpfulness of information sources, and ( 4) preferred modalities for teaching. Methods: A total of 108 adults completed an oral survey in clinic, consisti ng of open-ended questions, yes/no endorsements, Likert ratings, and demogr aphic questions. Results: The majority reported learning to parent from their families or "b y just doing it." Talking with professionals was rated as very helpful. Mos t had parenting questions. Almost half wanted information regarding specifi c developmental/behavioral issues, while only 8% wanted medical information . Most felt they could talk with clinic professionals about concerns but fe wer had done so. Modality preferences were reported. Conclusions: Inner-city parents value working with primary care providers t o improve knowledge of developmental/behavioral issues. Results have implic ations for the anticipatory guidance process, content of information provid ed, and the training of pediatric healthcare providers. We determined prefe rences for information delivery.