Parental knowledge of children’s developmental milestones in Aseer, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background: Better parental knowledge about developmental milestones of children is linked to better parent–child interaction. Only a handful of surveys have been conducted to evaluate parental knowledge of developme ntal milestones in Arabic-speaking countries. Materials and Methods: The study is a cross-sectional, questionnaire-based observational investigation using a simple random sampling scheme. The sampling frame consisted of all parents attending the family medicine services during the period of conduct of the study. Poisson regression modelling techniques were used to analyse the adjusted effect of sociodemographic factors on knowledge score. Results: Three hundred and seventy-five parents agreed to be included in the study. Only 29 (7.7%) had an excellent knowledge level. Poor knowledge was found among 141 (37.6%) participants. Also, 180 (48%) participants were found to have an acceptable level of knowledge. Mothers achieved acceptable knowledge of developmental milestones better than fathers, and better knowledge was found in less-crowded houses. Physical developmental milestones were known by 304 (81.1%) participants, followed by cognitive development milestones ( n = 78, 20.8%), social development milestones ( n = 47, 12.5%) and emotional development milestones ( n = 85, 22.7%). The internet was the most used source ( n = 83, 22.1%). The most avoided sources were educational workshops ( n = 230, 61.3%), followed by doctors ( n = 159, 42.4%) and social media ( n = 130, 34.7%). Conclusions: We confirmed in this work that parental knowledge of children’s developmental milestones is suboptimum among Saudi parents. Use of the internet and avoidance of healthcare professionals is a source of concern. Care is required for children coming from overcrowded homes in terms of their developmental progress. Focus should be on educating parents about the social and emotional developmental milestones.

Knowledge, attitude, and practices of parents regarding the red flags of developmental milestones in children aged 0–5 years in Karachi, Pakistan: a cross-sectional study

“…Only, 14 percent of our respondents answered correctly. In one of the studies done in Aseer, Saudi Arabia shows that only 12.5%, slightly higher than our population [ 17 ]. This shows that overall knowledge regarding social milestones is poor regardless of the region of the world.…”

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practices of parents regarding the red flags of developmental milestones in children aged 0-5 years in Karachi, Pakistan: A cross-sectional study

“…Only, 14 percent of our respondents answered correctly. In one of the studies done in Aseer, Saudi Arabia shows that only 12.5%, slightly higher than our population (11). This shows that overall knowledge regarding social milestones is poor regardless of the region of the world.…”

Evaluating the Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices of Saudi Arabian Parents Regarding Red Flags in Developmental Milestones

“…Although Saudi parents essentially placed confidence in pediatric roles for milestone guidance, only around half regarded current physician information as entirely satisfactory for establishing adequate developmental consciousness [ 9 ]. Previous evidence indicates that nearly 60% of parents show a willingness for more excellent information from healthcare providers [ 4 ].…”

“…The study revealed that only 29 (7.7%) participants had outstanding knowledge, while 141 (37.6%) participants had poor knowledge. Additionally, 180 (48%) participants had a sufficient degree of knowledge [ 9 ]. Furthermore, a cross-sectional study conducted in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia from January to February 2020 revealed that only 51.8% of participants were aware of developmental milestones.…”