Open AccessParent reports of sun safety communication and behaviour for students in a randomised trial on a school policy implementation intervention
Author(s) -
Buller David B.,
Reynolds Kim D.,
Buller Mary K.,
Massie Kim,
Berteletti Julia,
Ashley Jeff,
Meenan Richard
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
australian and new zealand journal of public health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.946
H-Index - 76
eISSN - 1753-6405
pISSN - 1326-0200
DOI - 10.1111/1753-6405.12987
Subject(s) - sun protection , medicine , intervention (counseling) , randomized controlled trial , demography , family medicine , nursing , environmental health , surgery , sociology
Objective : Schools are an important setting for skin cancer prevention. An intervention for implementation of school sun safety policy, Sun Safety Schools (SSS), was evaluated. Methods : Primary schools (n=118) in California school districts that had already adopted a sun safety policy were enrolled in a study with a randomised controlled design. Half of the schools were randomised to SSS intervention (N=58). Parents completed an online post‐test. Results : More parents in intervention schools received information about sun safety (mean=26.3%, sd=3.1%, p=0.017) and children more frequently wore sun‐protective clothing when not at school (mean=2.93, sd=0.03, p=0.033) than in control schools (mean=18.0%, sd=2.5%; mean=2.83, sd=0.03, respectively). In schools where principals reported implementing sun safety practices, parents reported that children spent less time outdoors at midday (mean=14.78 hours, sd=0.25, p=0.033) and fewer were sunburned (mean=12.7%, sd=1.1%, p=0.009) than in non‐implementing schools (M=16.3 hours, sd=0.67; mean=21.2%, sd=3.8%, respectively). Parents who received sun safety information (mean=3.08, sd=0.04, p=0.008) reported more child sun protection than parents not receiving information (mean=2.96, sd=0.02). Conclusions : A school district sun protection policy and support for implementation increased dissemination of sun safety information to parents and student sun safety. Implications for public health : Technical assistance for sun safety policies may increase sun protection of children.