Diseño y validación de un cuestionario para determinar los hábitos y conocimientos en higiene corporal infantil y su aplicación en escolares y menores en desamparo de la Región de Murcia

Abstract

Abstract: General aim (1) To evaluate the knowledge and personal hygiene habits of schoolchildren and children in residential foster care aged between 7 and 12 years. Specific aims (1) To design and validate an instrument to comprehensively assess the knowledge and personal hygiene habits in children aged between 7 and 12 years. (2) To describe the knowledge and personal hygiene habits in schoolchildren aged between 7 and 12 years and children in residential foster care in the Region of Murcia. (3) To evaluate the relationship between knowledge and personal hygiene habits of schoolchildren and sociodemographic factors age and sex. (4) To evaluate the relationship between knowledge and personal hygiene habits of schoolchildren and the location of the school. (5) To compare the knowledge and personal hygiene habits among children in residential foster care and schoolchildren by socioeconomic level of the families. Methodology: First phase: cross-sectional study for the validation of an experiment carried out during the years 2013 and 2014. A literature review; content validation for 7 experts; pilot survey; item response analysis, and evaluation by test-retest reliability were carried out. Participants were students from 2nd to 6th grade of Primary School in an area close to the city of Murcia suburban area, aged between 7 and 12 / as well as their parents and / or mothers. Also it is got with the participation of children from a medium/long stay center for young from the Region of Murcia (CARM). Second phase: The study was conducted during 2014 and 2015 through quantitative design. An observational and descriptive study was carried out to evaluate the habits and personal hygiene knowledge in schoolchildren aged between 7 and 12 years compere with children in children's home in the Region of Murcia. The study was conducted with the participation of schoolchildren in three schools in rural, urban and suburban location and their parents or legal guardians, and with the collaboration of abandoned minors recently joined a protection center of the CARM. Data collection in school and under protection centers was conducted through a questionnaire HICORIN¿. Socioeconomic data were obtained from school survey of parents / mothers through the questionnaire HICORIN-Socioeconomic, and centers under protection through data recorded in the software GISME and / or records of minors. Analysis of the data was performed using the statistical package SPSS version 21 for Windows. Results: First phase: 20 items including items with instruments on child personal hygiene were obtained. 34 items were selected and drafted 48 new. Validation of experts reduced HICORIN¿ to 63 items and included seven dimensions of child personal hygiene (body skin, hair, hands, oral, feet, ears, and personal hygiene). After running a pilot survey some terms were adapted to improve the children's understanding. Only two items have rates exceeding 10% of non-response. The test-retest showed 84.1% of the items reliability between very good and moderate. Second phase: From the sample of students selected for the study (n=758) participated finally 59.89% (n=454), with 49.8% boys and 49.3% girls. 61.2% of the children came from families with high studies. For those under protection centers was surveyed to 51 children, being 47.1% boys and 52.9% girls. 90.2% came from families with no education or primary education. In bivariate analysis 80 significant associations were obtained between age, sex and location of the center and variables related to body hygiene HICORIN¿ and independent variables. The comparison between schoolchildren and children from juvenile protection centers gets 50 significant associations. Conclusions HICORIN¿ is a reliable and valid instrument that fully values the habits and personal hygiene knowledge in children of 7-12 years. It could be applied to social care and education sectors and for children of all socioeconomic levels. Schoolchildren with higher incomes in the usual home and living in urban or suburban areas have better health habits, being the schoolchildren in rural areas have considerably habits far away from the current recommendations on personal hygiene. It is evident that the acquisition of knowledge and autonomy in personal hygiene are higher with age, there are few significant differences between sexes associated to the habits and personal hygiene knowledge in childhood. Children living in children's home have less knowledge and personal hygiene habits considerably far from current recommendations those schoolchildren. Also, suffer a major social rejection by other minor motivated by poor personal hygiene, while this hardly happens in schoolchildren. The family is the principal agent in education in personal hygiene of children, being more influential in school than under protection centers.