Effectiveness of Family Participation in Visual Care Program for School-Aged Children Using Digital Devices: A Quasi-Experimental Study

Abstract

Many cultures encourage children to learn through digital devices however, this can cause digital eye strain. Therefore, encouraging parental participation in visual care for school-aged children to promote the appropriate use of digital devices will aid in the prevention of digital device-induced eye strain. This quasi-experimental study aimed to determine the effect of eight-week family participation in the visual care programs for family practices and digital eye strain syndrome among school-aged children. Thirty-eight parents or guardians of school-aged children were randomly selected from two schools within two districts in Chiang Mai province in Thailand and randomly assigned to the experimental group (n = 19) or the control group (n = 19). The experimental group received family participation in the visual care program and routine health care services, and the control group received only routine health care service. Instruments for collecting the data were a personal information form, the Family Practice Questionnaire, and the Digital Eye Strain Syndrome Assessment Form for School-Aged Children. Descriptive statistics, Fisher's exact test, an independent t-test, and a paired t-test were used to analyze the data. The findings revealed that the mean scores for family practice in the experimental group at posttest were significantly higher than on pretest and significantly higher than those of the control group. Additionally, the experimental group had substantially fewer digital eye strain syndrome than the control group. This program should be further verified by being studied over a more extended period and in different locations in Thailand. It has the potential for nurses to use as a model to promote visual care for school-aged children against digital eye strain syndrome by integrating it as part of their services based on family participation.