Karen DeSafey Liller

Evaluation of a poison prevention lesson for kindergarten and third grade students

Objectives—The purpose of this study was to evaluate the MORE HEALTH poison prevention lesson that is given to kindergarten and third grade students in Hillsborough County, Florida. The lesson reaches approximately 6000 students per year. Methods—The evaluation was based on a post-test only control group design. Three schools were chosen as evaluation sites and three served as control settings. Students were administered a previously tested, age appropriate questionnaire that addressed the goals of the poison lessons. In addition, a survey was developed for intervention school parents to determine their poison prevention practices. Results—One hundred ninety four intervention schoolchildren and 184 control schoolchildren completed the study. Children in the intervention schools consistently answered more questions correctly than those in the control schools. The parent survey showed that the majority have homes that are safe from poisons, although fewer than 50% said they had syrup of ipecac in their homes. Conclusions—These results show that key concepts related to poison prevention can be communicated effectively to primary school students and parents report having homes safe from many poisons.

Children's bicycle helmet use and injuries in Hillsborough County, Florida before and after helmet legislation

The purpose of this research was to explore the changes in childrens bicycle helmet use and motor vehicle bicycle related injuries in Hillsborough County, Florida before and after passage of the Floridas bicycle helmet law for children under the age of 16. The results show a significant increase in bicycle helmet use among children, ages 5–13, in the post-law years compared with the pre-law years. Also, there has been a significant decline in the rates of bicycle related motor vehicle injuries among children in the post-law years compared with the pre-law years. Although there have been complementary educational and outreach activities in the county to support helmet use, it appears that the greatest increase in use occurred after the passage of the helmet law. It is recommended that educational efforts continue to sustain helmet use rates and decreases in injuries.

Home Injuries: Potential for Prevention

There are approximately 18 000 injury-related deaths at home each year. Some of the leading causes of home injury deaths are falls, fire/ burns, poisonings, choking/suffocations, and drownings. Many more home injuries are treated at emergency departments, in doctors’ offices, or with self-care at home. Children and older adults are especially at risk for home injuries, and environmental factors can contribute to population disparities in home injuries. The causes and circumstances of home injuries are complex and multifaceted. This article provides an overview of the epidemiology and burden of home injuries and reviews the evidence for prevention by life stage. Reducing the risk of injuries at home is challenging, but fortunately there many ways that practitioners can help promote safer behaviors and help change home environments for patients and their families.

Preventing Unintentional Injuries in the Home Using the Health Impact Pyramid

Injuries continue to be the leading cause of death for the first four decades of life. These injuries result from a confluence of behavioral, physical, structural, environmental, and social factors. Taken together, these illustrate the importance of taking a broad and multileveled approach to injury prevention. Using examples from fall, fire, scald, and poisoning-related injuries, this article illustrates the utility of an approach that incorporates a social–environmental perspective in identifying and selecting interventions to improve the health and safety of individuals. Injury prevention efforts to prevent home injuries benefit from multilevel modifications of behavior, public policy, laws and enforcement, the environment, consumer products and engineering standards, as demonstrated with Frieden’s Health Impact Pyramid. A greater understanding, however, is needed to explain the associations between tiers. While interventions that include modifications of the social environment are being field-tested, much more work needs to be done in measuring social–environmental change and in evaluating these programs to disentangle what works best.

Evaluation of the “Respect Not Risk” Firearm Safety Lesson for 3rd-Graders

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the MORE HEALTH “Respect Not Risk” Firearm Safety Lesson for 3rd-graders in Pinellas County, Florida. Six schools representative of various socioeconomic levels were selected as the test sites. Qualitative and quantitative data were collected. A total of 433 matched pretests/posttests were used to determine the effectiveness of the class in increasing student knowledge about firearm safety. The results revealed a significant increase in the mean scores on the posttest compared with the pretest. Qualitative findings showed the lesson was positively received by both students and teachers, and 65% of responding students reported discussing the lesson with family members. School nurses are encouraged to take a leading role in promoting firearm injury prevention to students.

Kids and Communities Count: Reaching Migrant Children and Families with the North American Guidelines for Children’s Agricultural Tasks (NAGCAT)

The Kids and Communities Count Farm Safety Lesson is a follow-up to our Kids Count Lesson that used the North American Guidelines for Childrens Agricultural Tasks (NAGCAT) and was previously delivered to nearly 2,000 fifth-grade students in Hillsborough County, Florida. This year, the lesson was administered in two migrant schools and included a parent survey and a presentation of the lesson in a community setting. The lesson covers animal, machinery, water, and general safety topics applicable to farming in Florida. A staggered pretest-posttest study design was followed whereby school 1 (N = 66) received a multiple-choice pretest and posttest and school 2 (N = 91) received the posttest only, for a total sample size of 157 participants. Results of the study showed a significant increase in the mean number of correct answers on the posttest compared to the pretest, such that the mean score improved from 5.0 on the pretest to 6.6 on the posttest (paired t-test, p = 0.000). The results of the parent survey and the administration of the lesson in the community showed that over 50% of the 106 parent participants reported that their children were practicing safe farm behaviors since the lesson; however, there was a particular need to address pesticide safety in the community. This study shows the efficacy of the Kids Count lesson in improving farm safety knowledge among migrant school children, and the applicability and acceptance of the lesson by parents and community members.

An Exploratory Study of Occupational Burnout among Selected Health Educators

Abstract Burnout has been described as a condition resulting from emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and a reduced sense of personal accomplishment. It particularly affects those individuals in the “helping professions,” and contributes to job withdrawal, absenteeism, and depression. This study used the Maslach Burnout Inventory to assess the degree of burnout among health educators who were members of the Florida Association of Professional Health Educators. The results showed that this sample of health educators had lower burnout scores than some other professional groups. Limitations of this study and implications for future research are discussed.

Bicycle Helmet Use among Children in Hillsborough County, Florida

Abstract The purpose of this study was to collect baseline data of childrens bicycle helmet use in a large, demographically diverse Florida county. Observational surveys of bicycle helmet use among children were conducted. Sixty census tracts and 120 observation sites were used for this study. Eight-hundred-forty-one children were observed. Thirty children, or 3.6 percent of the sample, were observed wearing helmets. No adults accompanying children wore helmets. Twenty-eight of the 30 children who wore helmets rode bicycles in the highest income census tracts. A child was significantly more likely to wear a helmet if a child companion wore a helmet (p = .000). Results of this study show a need for health educators to participate in childrens bicycle helmet promotion efforts in this county. A comprehensive educational and legislative approach should be considered.

An Analysis of Injury Deaths on Florida Farms for Years 1989 Through 1998

The purpose of this study was to analyze injury deaths on Florida farms for years 1989 through 1998. A review of death certificates was undertaken for children, 0 to 17 years, and adults, ages 18 and older. There were a total of 231 injury deaths during this time period. Twenty deaths were in children and 211 deaths were in adults. The leading cause of death was machinery for both children and adults. Farmworkers between the ages of 60 to 89 were more likely to die of tractor deaths than other adult age groups. In addition, adult males were more likely to die on Florida farms than adult females, however, females were more likely to die as a result of a homicide. This study begins the injury related surveillance efforts of the Deep South Agricultural Health and Safety Center.

Analysis of Baseline Computerized Neurocognitive Testing Results among 5–11-Year-Old Male and Female Children Playing Sports in Recreational Leagues in Florida

There is a paucity of data related to sports injuries, concussions, and computerized neurocognitive testing (CNT) among very young athletes playing sports in recreational settings. The purpose of this study was to report baseline CNT results among male and female children, ages 5–11, playing sports in Hillsborough County, Florida using ImPACT Pediatric, which is specifically designed for this population. Data were collected from 2016 to 2017. The results show that 657 baseline tests were conducted and t-tests and linear regression were used to assess mean significant differences in composite scores with sex and age. Results showed that females scored better on visual memory and in general as age increased, baseline scores improved. The results can be used to build further studies on the use of CNT in recreational settings and their role in concussion treatment, management, and interventions.