Helping parents to cope when their preschool children are acutely ill
BMJ 1997; 314 doi: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.314.7077.373a (Published 01 February 1997) Cite this as: BMJ 1997;314:373
Educational interventions may defuse parents' concern
- Piero Impicciatore, Research fellowa,
- Andrea Violante, Research fellowa,
- Maurizio Bonati, Heada
- a Laboratory for Mother and Child Health, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche “Mario Negri” 20157 Milan, Italy
- b Centre for Research in Primary and Community Care, Faculty of Health and Human Sciences, University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield AL10 9AB
- c London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London WC1E 7HT
Editor–Joe Kai used a qualitative study to explore parents' concern and information needs in coping with acute illness in preschool children.1 2 We recently conducted a survey in Italy to examine mothers' knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes about fever in their child.
Eligibility for our study required that a mother had coped with a febrile episode in her child during the previous month and that the child was aged between 6 months and 6 years. Of 707 mothers who fulfilled the criteria for inclusion, 416 reported that they had been concerned during the febrile episode and 118 that they had been very worried.
At the start of the fever 127 mothers immediately called the doctor, and during the febrile episode the doctor made a home visit in 537 cases. Altogether 615 mothers reported that they …
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