Among children 5-19 years, the commonest cause of unintentional injury-related death is being an occupant/driver in a motor vehicle crash (MVC). In 2006 in the United States, there were 568,188 injuries among children (0-18) due to MVC. Of these, 38,039 were severe enough to require hospitalisation and there were 6,781 deaths. Seat belts and appropriate child restraints reduce the morbidity and mortality from MVC. Yet studies have shown that less than 50% of children hospitalised from a MVC were restrained at the time of the crash. In 2007, a statewide direct observation survey reported 93.7% of Michigan motorists wore their seat belts in the front seat. In 2007, at the University of Michigan CS Mott Hospital, 120 children were hospitalised due to MVC and only 64% were restrained. The unrestrained children suffered the most severe injuries and had the greater morbidity. A prime factor that influences whether a child uses a safety device is whether a parent uses a seat belt. In focus groups, teens said they used seat belts because of how they were raised. In a prior study, we compared safety attitudes and practices with 800 grade 4-6 children paired with their parents. Matched analysis demonstrated that parents who always wear a seat belt are more likely to have children who sit in the back seat and wear a seat belt (73% vs. 27%, p<0.05). This suggests that the parent/child non-seat belt/restraint users are an ideal target for an intervention. Our hypothesis for this study was that both parents and children are equally important in modifying pediatric safety practices. The specific aim of this study was to develop and test in a randomised controlled study a brief family- centred “seat belt intervention. (Author/publisher) Sponsered by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA, Office of Behavioral Safety Research (OBSR).
Abstract