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Psychosocial health issues in pediatric practices: parents' knowledge and concerns
Insights
Parents' knowledge of child development is linked to age, education, and income. Pediatrician visits are key for addressing psychosocial concerns and guiding parents on child health.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Developmental Psychology
- Health Communication
Background:
- Parental knowledge of child development significantly impacts child health outcomes.
- Understanding demographic factors influencing this knowledge is crucial for targeted interventions.
- Pediatric practices offer a vital platform for disseminating health information to parents.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between parental demographic factors and their general knowledge of child development.
- To identify effective sources and educational techniques for parental knowledge enhancement.
- To explore the types of child health concerns parents wish to discuss with pediatricians.
Main Methods:
- A questionnaire survey was administered to 230 parents across three diverse pediatric practices in the south-central United States.
- Chi square analysis was employed as the primary statistical method to analyze demographic associations.
- Data on helpful information sources and desired discussion topics were collected.
Main Results:
- Parental age, educational attainment, and income were statistically associated with their level of child development knowledge.
- Parents identified specific past and present sources and educational methods as most beneficial.
- A significant majority (81%) of parents' potential questions for pediatricians pertained to psychosocial issues.
Conclusions:
- Pediatric practices serve as a logical and effective channel for delivering information on children's behavioral and physical health.
- Enhancing pediatricians' training in behavioral issues and communication skills is essential.
- Findings can inform the selection of anticipatory guidance and educational strategies for pediatric practices.
Abstract:
Parents' general knowledge of child development and the demographic factors associated with that knowledge were studied. A questionnaire was completed by 230 parents of patients from three quite different pediatric practices in the south-central United States. Chi square analysis was used as the major statistical technique. Results indicated that age, educational level, and income were associated with level of child development knowledge. Parents reported the sources and educational techniques that were most helpful to them in the past and present. The majority (81%) of the questions that parents wished to direct to pediatricians, given sufficient time, were concerned with psycho- social issues. It appears that the pediatric practice is a logical means of providing information to parents about their children's health concerns, both behavioral and physical. These results emphasize the importance of training pediatricians in behavioral issues and in improving their communication skills. The results are presented to help pediatricians select the anticipatory guidance and educational techniques that might be provided to parents through the pediatric practice.