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Evaluation of a drowning prevention campaign in King County, Washington
E Bennett1, P Cummings, L Quan
1Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center, Seattle, WA 98105, USA.
Objectives:
A three year drowning prevention campaign focused on increasing the use of life vests among children 1-14 years old. An evaluation was conducted to determine campaign awareness, change in ownership and use of life vests by children, and predictors of life vest use.
Setting:
King County, Washington.
Methods:
Four telephone surveys were conducted with parents before, during, and after the campaign.
Results:
The campaign was recalled by 50% of families surveyed. From before to after the campaign, reported life vest use by children on docks, beaches, or at pools increased from 20% to 29% (p < 0.01) and life vest ownership for children increased from 69% to 75% (p = 0.06). Among parents aware of the campaign, reported child life vest use increased from 20% to 34% (p < 0.001) and ownership increased from 69% to 80% (p < 0.01). Among families unaware of the campaign, neither life vest use nor ownership changed significantly. Children were more often reported to wear life vests if a parent knew of the campaign, was confident fitting the vest, was younger than 40 years, felt the child could not swim well, and owned a life vest for the child.
Conclusions:
A community-wide drowning prevention campaign resulted in a significant, although modest, increase in reported life vest use and ownership among children.