In 1997, the North Carolina Residential Fire Project used a systematic process to select counties with residents at highest risk for fire injury. In-home service providers from health departments were trained by study personnel to identify dwellings without working smoke alarms (SAs) and teach fire safety as part of their routine home visits. In the intervention counties, 404 households without smoke alarms were subsequently referred to fire departments for SA installation. In the comparison counties, 291 households without SAs were given free SA vouchers for redemption at local health departments. At follow-up beginning February 2000, 93.88% of the intervention households and 80.72% of the comparison households in which the working status of a SA could be observed were found to have working smoke alarms. This increase in the prevalence of functioning smoke alarms from 0 to over 80% occurred even when fire departments installed a SA or replaced batteries in 76.98% of the intervention households (n=311), and residents redeemed only 38.14% of the SA vouchers (n=111). This suggests that the initial components of intervention (identification of high risk households by health departments, client sensitization to the need for smoke alarms and review of fire safety measures by in-home service providers) did not require the additional referral to fire departments or free vouchers to effectively increase the prevalence of working smoke alarms in rural communities.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participants (learners) in this session will be able to: 1. Describe the North Carolina Residential Fire Injury Prevention Program; 2. Recognize the potential benefits of using extant, local, in-home service providers for fire injury prevention 3. Assess the degree to which this program will be useful in their state or local area.
Keywords: Injury Prevention, Epidemiology
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.