Helping All Children be Safe Outdoors with Sun Protection

The design will: • deliver the intervention in two pediatric practices in the Advocate Medical Group, • provide a read-along book in English and Spanish for parents to read with the child • send weekly text message reminders to the parents • assess change in the parents’ reported use of sun protection of the child prior to and 4 weeks after the educational intervention (read-along book, swim shirt) and change in skin color of the arm of the 2-6 year old child in those receiving the intervention and controls. The population of children will be expanded to include about 25% representation of Hispanic children. There is growing recognition that Hispanics in the U.S. are at risk for higher mortality from melanoma, and are experiencing a rising rate of melanoma. Previous studies of adults have shown lower skin cancer knowledge and awareness in minority populations, particularly among Hispanic populations. Hispanic households are the fastest growing households in the U.S.; one in every four Americans will be of Hispanic ethnicity in 2050. As the number of Hispanic children increases, it is imperative to develop strategies to optimize skin cancer education and prevention in this population. This is a pilot study to determine the ability to recruit subjects, the number of subjects lost to follow-up, and the outcome of the educational intervention and providing the swim shirt to caregivers. This pilot data is needed to prepare an application for a grant to the National Cancer Institute to support a randomized controlled trial with participants individually randomized at accrual.