Evaluation of parental knowledge of pediatric rheumatic diseases

Objective: To investigate the parental knowledge of pediatric rheumatic dis eases in general, and in particular information regarding their children's diseases. To focus on the important role of health education in understandi ng these chronic diseases, and formulate a future plan for establishing a g eneral public education program. Methods: One hundred sets of parents, of children with established rheumati c diseases with mean duration of illness, (4.1 +/- 2.83), a mean child age (9.9 +/- 3.15) years, were given a 20 multiple choice questionnaire during their routine visit to the Pediatric Rheumatology Clinic and Physiotherapy Department or to the: pediatric ward at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, over a 6-month period between Decem ber 1998 and June 1999. The questionnaire addressed 4 main areas: 1. parent al awareness regarding their children's diagnosis and duration, 2. source o f information and parental satisfaction, 3. general knowledge about rheumat ic diseases and 4. knowledge about medical and physical therapy. The total possible score is 23, Results: The overall mean score is 11.6. The mean total score is not affect ed by the parental education level. The majority of parents have wrong beli efs, regarding rheumatic diseases. The treating physician is the main sourc e of parental information and in the majority of the parents, this informat ion is satisfactory. Conclusion: The questionnaire is a simple and easy test to investigate pare ntal knowledge regarding pediatric rheumatic diseases. The survey shows the need for health education programs and a future: general public health edu cation plan to improve awareness of pediatric rheumatic diseases and maybe other chronic illness.