Abstract：
BACKGROUND: Child swimming lessons are a key intervention for drowning prevention; however, participation has been severely affected by COVID-19 restrictions and cost-of-living challenges. To encourage re-engagement, the New South Wales government began providing A$100 swimming lesson vouchers. Parent/carers of eligible preschool-aged children were asked to complete a survey during voucher creation. This study aimed to examine pre-existing challenges to lesson participation among families who had not participated in the preceding 12 months.
METHODS: Cross-sectional data from parent/carer surveys completed between December 2021 and June 2022 were analysed. Binary logistic models analysed associations between sociodemographic factors and answered affirmatively to one or more challenges to participation from a predefined list.
RESULTS: Of 221 218 vouchers created, 79 553 parent/carers (36%) indicated that their child had not participated in swimming lessons in the last 12 months and responded to the question about participation challenges. Parent/carers of children with disabilities or residing in low socioeconomic areas had higher odds of indicating cost was a challenge while regional/remote families had over five times higher odds of indicating swim school availability difficulties. Families speaking a non-English language at home had over 2.5 times higher odds of thinking that their child was too young for swimming lessons, higher odds of thinking swimming lessons were not important and higher odds of indicating that COVID-19 had challenged participation.
CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight how different population groups experience challenges to participation in swimming lessons. Alleviating costs and increasing lesson availability is important.
METHODS: Cross-sectional data from parent/carer surveys completed between December 2021 and June 2022 were analysed. Binary logistic models analysed associations between sociodemographic factors and answered affirmatively to one or more challenges to participation from a predefined list.
RESULTS: Of 221 218 vouchers created, 79 553 parent/carers (36%) indicated that their child had not participated in swimming lessons in the last 12 months and responded to the question about participation challenges. Parent/carers of children with disabilities or residing in low socioeconomic areas had higher odds of indicating cost was a challenge while regional/remote families had over five times higher odds of indicating swim school availability difficulties. Families speaking a non-English language at home had over 2.5 times higher odds of thinking that their child was too young for swimming lessons, higher odds of thinking swimming lessons were not important and higher odds of indicating that COVID-19 had challenged participation.
CONCLUSIONS: These findings highlight how different population groups experience challenges to participation in swimming lessons. Alleviating costs and increasing lesson availability is important.
摘要：
背景：儿童游泳课是预防溺水的关键干预措施；然而，参与受到COVID-19限制和生活费用挑战的严重影响。为了鼓励重新参与，新南威尔士州政府开始提供100美元的游泳课程券。在代金券创建过程中，要求符合条件的学龄前儿童的父母/照顾者完成调查。这项研究旨在研究在过去12个月中未参与的家庭中对课程参与的先前存在的挑战。
方法：分析了2021年12月至2022年6月之间完成的父母/照顾者调查的横截面数据。二元逻辑模型分析了社会人口统计学因素之间的关联，并从预定义列表中肯定地回答了参与的一个或多个挑战。
结果：在创建的221218张凭证中，79553名父母/照顾者（36％）表示他们的孩子在过去12个月中没有参加游泳课程，并回答了有关参与挑战的问题。残疾儿童或居住在低社会经济地区的父母/照顾者表明成本是一个挑战的可能性更高，而地区/偏远家庭表明游泳学校存在困难的可能性更高五倍。在家里说非英语语言的家庭认为他们的孩子太小不能上游泳课的几率要高出2.5倍以上，认为游泳课并不重要的可能性更高，表明COVID-19挑战了参与的可能性更高。
结论：这些发现强调了不同人群在参加游泳课程时遇到的挑战。减轻成本和增加课程可用性很重要。
方法：分析了2021年12月至2022年6月之间完成的父母/照顾者调查的横截面数据。二元逻辑模型分析了社会人口统计学因素之间的关联，并从预定义列表中肯定地回答了参与的一个或多个挑战。
结果：在创建的221218张凭证中，79553名父母/照顾者（36％）表示他们的孩子在过去12个月中没有参加游泳课程，并回答了有关参与挑战的问题。残疾儿童或居住在低社会经济地区的父母/照顾者表明成本是一个挑战的可能性更高，而地区/偏远家庭表明游泳学校存在困难的可能性更高五倍。在家里说非英语语言的家庭认为他们的孩子太小不能上游泳课的几率要高出2.5倍以上，认为游泳课并不重要的可能性更高，表明COVID-19挑战了参与的可能性更高。
结论：这些发现强调了不同人群在参加游泳课程时遇到的挑战。减轻成本和增加课程可用性很重要。
