Determination of the relationship between parents' health literacy and fever management of their children: A cross-sectional study.

ABSTRACT

AIMS: The research was conducted to determine the practices of parents regarding the fever management of their children and reveal the relationship between their health literacy (HL) and fever management of their children. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study was used. METHODS: This study was carried out with 242 parents. The data were collected using the Parent Descriptive Information Form, Turkish HL Scale-32 and Parents' Fever Management Scale between September 2021 and September 2022. The data were evaluated with the SPSS program, using percentages, averages, Pearson's correlation and regression analysis. RESULTS: The mean age of the parents was 31.87 ± 6.59. The parents' mean Parents' Fever Management Scale score was 36.22. It means that parents had high fever management practice. Their mean Turkish HL Scale-32 total score was 34.43. 51.6% of the parents had a problematic or insufficient HL level. In the cases of fever, 61.2% of the parents stated that they took off the child's clothes, 69.0% measured temperature from the armpit, and 55.4% gave antipyretics according to the doctor's prescription. There is a statistically significant positive correlation between the Parents' Fever Management Scale and Turkish HL Scale-32. It is observed that 8.2% of the change in parents' fever management is explained by HL. CONCLUSION: The study found that with an increase in parents' HL, fever management of their children also increased. IMPLICATIONS FOR THE PROFESSION AND/OR PATIENT CARE Emerging evidence showed that developing parents' HL knowledge and skills could be an option/approach in fever management. It should be a basic nursing skill that to provide HL support to parents. REPORTING METHOD: This study adhered to the relevant cross-sectional STROBE (the Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology) guidelines. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION No patient or public contribution.