Moms aren't sending their sniffling and coughing kids to the school nurse, survey finds
PARSIPPANY, N.J. - More and more, consumers are not checking in with their health professionals when sick with a cold, a new Reckitt Benckiser survey released Thursday found.
Not even moms.
Despite the frequency with which children get sick each cough and cold season and the numerous recognized negative effects of coughing, sniffling and congestion, many mothers are underutilizing healthcare professionals for advice on the best ways to determine treatment options.
"School nurses understand that mothers can feel helpless in the face of their child's suffering during cough and cold season," stated Donna Mazyck, executive director of the National Association of School Nurses. "Along with mothers, we provide the best care possible to children to help them feel better quickly and get back to the classroom and learning as soon as possible," she said. "Directing moms to have a conversation with their pediatrician to learn how to better navigate cough and cold symptoms can help everyone feel better."
NASN is collaborating with RB on this educational effort to raise awareness about these survey results and encourage parents to reach out to their healthcare provider to determine when it is appropriate to give their child an over-the-counter medication.
The survey looked at the experiences of 1,303 participants (1,002 mothers of children pre-K through eighth grade; 301 school nurses of children pre-K through eighth grade) to better understand how cough and cold symptoms affect the everyday lives of children, and how mothers and school nurses are navigating this challenging time of year.
"Many moms believe that coughs and colds are a seasonal annoyance that they are powerless against, but the reality is that when armed with accurate information, they can and should take swift, confident action to treat their kids' cough and cold symptoms," said Laurence Flint, one of the authors involved in developing the study. "Healthcare professionals can help provide mothers with guidance about which treatment options may alleviate a child's symptoms. In addition to hydration and rest, I encourage mothers to consider over-the-counter medications, which can help provide symptom relief and allow kids to feel better faster."
Establishing a treatment plan before a child gets sick is especially important, given many moms do not feel equipped to tackle cough and cold symptoms with confidence. Though they can see that their children are suffering — primarily in terms of energy level and focus — when symptoms go unaddressed, they feel they have to let the cold run its course.
The survey found:
Just 23% of mothers surveyed would consider contacting their healthcare professional for counsel on how to best manage cough and cold symptoms, and only 29% of mothers would contact their healthcare professional for advice about over-the-counter medications;
Of school nurses surveyed, 64% reported that many mothers worry they're not doing enough to alleviate symptoms. School nurses can be a valuable health resource for mothers, as they strive to keep their children healthy during cough and cold season; and
Around seven in 10 moms (73%) want guidance from a pediatrician on which type of OTC medication to give their child or whether to administer these types of medications at all (69%).
An effective treatment plan is crucial, given the effect cough/cold symptoms have on children, according to mothers and school nurses. Not surprisingly, these symptoms have a negative impact on the ability of children to focus, perform in the classroom and sleep, and lead to missed time in school for children pre-K to eighth grade. Consider the following survey statistics about the peak cough and cold season months of December through February:
84% of school nurses report that children visit their office because they're finding it hard to focus or participate in class;
43% of moms report that when their child has a cold, he/she has a harder time focusing and takes longer to complete tasks;
78% of moms and 90% of school nurses say health issues during cough and cold season disrupt a child's energy level;
School nurses report not only an uptick in office visits (80%) and more time spent in their office (75%), but 68% say they also see the same students more than once during this period, often to address similar symptoms;
More than half (51%) of mothers note that health issues during this time disrupt their children's attendance in school;
And while 43% of mothers would like guidance on when to keep their children home from school, only 19% consult a pediatrician for this reason - despite the fact that mothers report that their children get sick an average of 3 times during each cough and cold season; and
Sleep deficiencies run rampant, as 78% of mothers report that when their children are sick, they are more likely to be overtired, while 52% of mothers believe their children get less sleep when they're sick.
These survey findings were presented at the June 2015 American Cough Conference and will be published in an upcoming publication of the journal Lung. Market research vendor Kelton Global fielded this survey in late 2014. Developed as a collaboration between RB and NASN, the survey leveraged key insights from pediatrician Laurence Flint and school nurse Marylin Morrissey.