Exploring initial items for a parental self-assessment tool in detecting children's vision problems

• Main Authors: Sanmugam, Thashini, Assfi Rahmat, Baqiatu'l Sabiqi', Awg Isa, Mohd Zaki, Md Mustafa, Md Muziman Syah
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: CEDEC Training Sdn Bhd 2023
• Subjects: RE Ophthalmology
• Online Access: http://irep.iium.edu.my/109909/7/109909_Exploring%20initial%20items%20for%20a%20parental%20self-assessment%20tool.pdf; http://irep.iium.edu.my/109909/; https://ojs.msu.edu.my/index.php/joehr/article/view/426

The prevalence of undetected vision problems among children is steadily increasing, mainly due to low knowledge among parents and limited access to vision screening, resulting in hesitancy to seek professional eye care services for their children. The primary objective of our study was to identify the initial items for constructing a self-assessment tool that empowers parents to detect potential vision issues in their children. We conducted an extensive literature review on visual symptoms of vision problems using online search engines to compile a pool of items, refining them to include only those mentioned at least three times in the literature. Additionally, we gathered professional insights from interviews with paediatric eye care specialists. The items from both sources were carefully compared, and those aligning were selected as the final items. The literature review yielded 46 raw items, which were further refined into a robust set of 13 items mentioned in at least three literatures. The interviews contributed 20 items, which were analysed using Atlas.ti software. Combining both sources resulted in a comprehensive set of 26 items organised into six domains. The final items for the self-assessment tool will undergo validation in future studies. This tool aims to assist parents in screening their children's vision, concurrently reducing the incidence of undetected vision problems among children.