Citation

Klas KS, Vlahos PG, McCully MJ, Piche DR, Wang SC. J. Burn Care Res. 2014; 36(3): 387-393.

Affiliation

From the Trauma Burn Center, University of Michigan Health System, Ann Arbor, and Bloomfield Township Fire Department, Michigan.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, American Burn Association, Publisher Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1097/BCR.0000000000000151

PMID

25159554

Abstract

Validation of program effectiveness is essential in justifying school-based injury prevention education. Although Risk Watch (RW) targets burn, fire, and life safety, its effectiveness has not been previously evaluated in the medical literature. Between 2007 and 2012, a trained fire service public educator (FSPE) taught RW to all second grade students in one public school district. The curriculum was delivered in 30-minute segments for 9 consecutive weeks via presentations, a safety smoke house trailer, a model-sized hazard house, a student workbook, and parent letters. A written pretest (PT) was given before RW started, a posttest (PT#1) was given immediately after RW, and a second posttest (PT#2) was administered to the same students the following school year (ranging from 12 to 13 months after PT). Students who did not complete the PT or at least one posttest were excluded. Comparisons were made by the paired t-test, analysis of variance, and regression analysis. After 183 (8.7%) were excluded for missing tests, 1,926 remaining students scored significantly higher (P =.0001) on PT#1 (mean 14.8) and PT#2 (mean 14.7) than the PT (mean 12.1). There was 1 FSPE and 36 school teachers with class size ranging from 10 to 27 (mean 21.4). Class size was not predictive of test score improvement (R = 0%), while analysis of variance showed that individual teachers trended toward some influence. This 6-year prospective study demonstrated that the RW program delivered by an FSPE effectively increased short-term knowledge and long-term retention of fire/life safety in early elementary students. Collaborative partnerships are critical to preserving community injury prevention education programs.

Language: en