Burn prevention in Zambia: a work in progress.

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Pediatrics
• Injury Prevention

Background:

• Low- and moderate-income countries (LMICs) bear a significant burden of burn injuries.
• Inadequate burn care infrastructure in LMICs necessitates a strong focus on prevention strategies.
• Zambian youth exhibit knowledge deficits in burn prevention, highlighting the need for targeted educational interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess burn prevention knowledge among Zambian youth.
• To evaluate the effectiveness of an educational intervention in improving burn knowledge and retention.
• To identify persistent knowledge gaps after the intervention.

Main Methods:

• A burn prevention program was implemented in a rural Zambian district.
• Elementary school children completed a 10-question burn knowledge survey before and after an educational intervention.
• A control group of children from schools without the intervention were also assessed.
• Logistic regression was used for statistical adjustment of confounding variables.

Main Results:

• Children reassessed after the intervention showed significant improvement in three knowledge areas.
• Performance on five other questions improved but did not reach statistical significance.
• A significant decline in knowledge was observed regarding first aid treatment for burns.
• A majority of children retained knowledge deficits in three key concepts post-intervention.
• Knowledge varied significantly between schools and did not consistently improve with grade level.

Conclusions:

• Burn educational interventions can reduce knowledge deficits in youth, but substantial gaps may persist.
• Residual knowledge deficits pose a risk for increased burn injury incidence.
• Customized educational programs addressing specific, school-based knowledge gaps are recommended.
• Further research is needed to determine the program's impact on burn morbidity and mortality at the healthcare facility level.