 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
|
| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Mona Desai, MPH1, Linda Neuhauser, DrPH1, Leonard Syme1, Wendy Constantine2, Karen Sokal-Gutierrez, MD, MPH3, Susan King Obarski4, Norm Constantine, PhD5, and Lacy Clayton, MA6. (1) Center for Community Wellness, University of California at Berkeley, School of Public Health, 2140 Shattuck Ave 10th Floor, Berkeley, CA 94704-1210, (510)642-8415, mbdesai@uclink.berkeley.edu, (2) Research and Evaluation Systems, 1118 Garden Lane, Lafayette, CA 94549, (3) Independent Contractor, 2140 Shattuck Ave, 10 Floor, Berkeley, CA 94704-1210, (4) none, 141 Anita Drive, Pasadena, CA 91105, (5) Center for Research on Adolescent Health and Development, Public Health Institute, 2001 Addison Street, 2nd floor, Berkeley, CA 94704, (6) School of Public Health Center for Community Wellness, University of California, Berkeley, 2140 Shattuck Avenue, 10th Floor, Berkeley, CA 94704-1210
The First 5 California initiative developed the Kit for New Parents containing a baby book and educational videos and written materials on child development, health and safety, in both English and Spanish. The Kit is distributed to parents of California’s 500,000 infants born each year, one-half of whom are Spanish-speakers. An evaluation of the Kit studied parents’ use and satisfaction with the Kit; the Kit’s impact on parents’ knowledge and practices; and the relative effectiveness of distributing the Kit at different venues. Intervention and comparison mothers were recruited through prenatal centers, delivery hospitals and home visit programs. Both groups completed a brief baseline questionnaire of knowledge about infant nutrition, development, safety, and resources. Intervention mothers were given a Kit. All mothers were called six weeks later and asked the same questions. A 14-month follow-up questionnaire was completed by the Kit recipients, but could not be completed by the comparison group mothers due to statewide distribution of the Kit. Instead, the comparison group nominated mothers with babies the same age as the Kit recipients to comprise a snowball comparison sample who completed the 14-month follow-up. Kit recipients reported high rates of use of and satisfaction with the Kit and changes in their thinking or behavior related to infant development, health or safety as a result of the Kit. Kit recipients had significantly higher mean knowledge scores than the comparison groups at 6-week and 14-month follow-ups (p<.001). The greatest knowledge gains were made by mothers receiving the Kit prenatally and by Spanish-speaking Kit recipients.
Learning Objectives:
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
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.