Effects of simulation-based education on Ghanaian parents’ knowledge, attitude and management of fever control

Childhood fever is very discomforting and most parents are usually anxious when children exhibit fever, leading to unnecessary visits and admissions into pediatric emergency centers. This study aimed to determine the effects of simulation-based education on parents’ knowledge, attitude, and management of fever in children. A non-randomized quasi-experimental study using convenient sampling was conducted to recruit parents of children aged 3 months to 8 years admitted to the Tamale Teaching Hospital in Tamale, Ghana. The study was conducted from July to September 2019. Eighty parents were equally assigned into an intervention group and a control group and respectively educated using simulation-based and routine education approaches on childhood fever. Data were collected using a four-part questionnaire and analyzed using descriptive statistics, Chi-square, independent samples t, and paired t tests as well as analysis of covariance. Except for the mean baseline knowledge (P< 0.0001), there were no significant differences between the two groups in mean pretest scores. The mean scores of fever knowledge, attitude, and management of parents in the simulation-based education group were 21.63 ± 2.40, 28.48 ± 6.03, and 25.15 ± 4.23 at baseline and increased to 26.38 ± 4.36, 28.48 ± 6.03, and 32.33 ± 5.18, respectively (P< 0.0001). All mean scores on the posttest were better than on the pretest in both groups.  However, at the posttest, mean scores for knowledge, attitude, and management were significantly higher in the simulation-based education than in the routine education group (P < 0.05). Compared with routine education, simulation-based education was more effective in improving parents’ knowledge, attitude, and management of fever. We therefore, recommend the use of similar simulation-based methods in educating parents regarding caring for acute fever in their children.