Innovative use of a standardized debriefing guide to assist in the development of a research questionnaire with low literacy demands

Evaluating an urban pediatric hospital's scald burn prevention program

BACKGROUND

Over 450,000 individuals are hospitalized with burns annually and roughly 35% are scald burns. Children younger than 5 years of age are at the greatest risk of scald burn injury. Caregiver burn prevention programs have been found to reduce the prevalence of injuries in young children; however, low-income and underserved populations seldomly have access to these programs. The impact of scald burn prevention programs in underserved populations remains unexplored. The objective of the current study was to evaluate the efficacy of a scald burn prevention program at a Level One Pediatric Trauma Center in a low-income, underserved community.

METHODS

Our hospital developed a one-hour scald burn prevention program for caregivers with children 5 years of age or younger. The program educated caregivers on ways to prevent scald burns and create safeguards in their home. Caregivers completed a pre-post survey to measure their ability to identify hot or cold objects, as well as respond to items about their perceptions of the program's utility, their willingness to share it with others, and the likelihood that they would use the information in the future. Data was analyzed using a paired t-test.

RESULTS

Two-hundred and sixty-nine (N = 269) caregivers participated in the program. Before the program, caregivers could identify potentially hot objects 83.17% of the time, and after the program, they were able to identify these items 92.31% of the time: t (268) = 12.46, p < .001, d = 1.07. Additionally, 95% of caregivers indicated that the program was helpful, 99% stated that they were likely to share this information with others, and 100% indicated that they would use the information from the program.

CONCLUSIONS

Education is a critical component to prevent scald burns. Results indicate that a hospital-led scald burn prevention program can positively impact a caregiver's ability to identify possible scald-burn risks. Providing education to caregivers who typically do not receive this information could lower the prevalence of scald burns not only institutionally, but in communities that are disproportionately impacted by this mechanism of injury.

Use of Cognitive Interviews to Adapt PROMIS Measurement Items for Spanish Speakers Living with HIV

Purpose. To use cognitive interviewing techniques to assess comprehension of existing Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) items among Latinos living with HIV and then refine items based on participant feedback. Methods. Latino monolingual Spanish speakers living with HIV (n = 56) participated in cognitive interviews. Items from four PROMIS domains, including depression, anxiety, fatigue, and alcohol use, were assessed for comprehension. Audiotaped interviews and handwritten notes were subjected to content analysis to identify problems specific to each instrument for each domain. Results. The assessments from the cognitive interviews identified areas for improvement in each domain. We present data on the type of items that were difficult to comprehend and provide examples for how items were refined based on participants' and PROMIS Statistical Coordinating Center (PSCC) feedback. Six out of 48 depression items, 7 out of the 61 anxiety items, 18 out of 42 fatigue items, and 7 out of 44 alcohol use items were found to have poor comprehension. These items were refined based on participant feedback; the items were then submitted to the PSCC for additional guidance on linguistics and grammar to improve comprehension. Conclusions. Cognitive interviews may be used to enhance comprehension of PROMIS items among Latinos.

Inhaled corticosteroid beliefs, complementary and alternative medicine, and uncontrolled asthma in urban minority adults

BACKGROUND

Many factors contribute to uncontrolled asthma; negative inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) beliefs and complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) endorsement are 2 that are more prevalent in black compared with white adults.

OBJECTIVES

This mixed-methods study (1) developed and psychometrically tested a brief self-administered tool with low literacy demands to identify negative ICS beliefs and CAM endorsement and (2) evaluated the clinical utility of the tool as a communication prompt in primary care.

METHODS

Comprehensive literature reviews and content experts identified candidate items for our instrument that were distributed to 304 subjects for psychometric testing. In the second phase content analysis of 33 audio-recorded primary care visits provided a preliminary evaluation of the instrument's clinical utility.

RESULTS

Psychometric testing of the instrument identified 17 items representing ICS beliefs (α = .59) and CAM endorsement (α = .68). Test-retest analysis demonstrated a high level of reliability (intraclass correlation coefficient = 0.77 for CAM items and 0.79 for ICS items). We found high rates of CAM endorsement (93%), negative ICS beliefs (68%), and uncontrolled asthma (69%). CAM endorsement was significantly associated with uncontrolled asthma (P = .04). Qualitative data analysis provided preliminary evidence for the instrument's clinical utility in that knowledge of ICS beliefs and CAM endorsement prompted providers to initiate discussions with patients.

CONCLUSION

Negative ICS beliefs and CAM endorsement were common and associated with uncontrolled asthma. A brief self-administered instrument that identifies beliefs and behaviors that likely undermine ICS adherence might be a leveraging tool to change the content of communications during clinic visits.