[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 203 (Monday, October 21, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 64652-64653]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-26699]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes of Health


Submission for OMB Review; Comment Request; Behavioral and 
Environmental Risk Factors for Childhood

    Summary: Under the provisions of section 3507(a)(1)(D) of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, the National Institute of Child Health 
and Human Development (NICHD), the National Institutes of Health (NIH) 
has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to 
review and approve the information collection listed below. This 
proposed information collection was previously published in the Federal 
Register on January 29, 2002, page 4275 and allowed 60 days for public 
comment. Public comments in support of the data collection were 
received from the American Academy of Pediatrics. The purpose of this 
notice is

[[Page 64653]]

to allow an additional 30 days for public comment. The National 
Institutes of Health may not conduct or sponsor, and the respondent is 
not required to respond to, an information collection that has been 
extended, revised, or implemented on or after October 1, 1995, unless 
it displays a currently valid OMB control number.

Proposed Collection

    Title: Behavioral and Environmental Risk Factors for Childhood 
Drowning. Type of Information Collection Request: New. Need and Use of 
Information Collection: The proposed study seeks to determine the 
relationship between swimming lessons, swimming ability, and other risk 
or protective factors on the one hand, and the risk of drowning on the 
other. Drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury 
death among children in the United States. Children under the age of 
five years are at particularly increased risk with drowning rates 
peaking among 1-2 year olds. Adolescent males are also at increased 
risk. While some preventive strategies, such as pool fencing, are known 
to be effective, the impact of other preventive strategies is unclear. 
For example, it is estimated that at least 20% of children between the 
ages of 1-4 years participate in formal swimming instructions, yet the 
effect of these instructions on the risk of drowning is unknown. Some 
argue that early exposure to swimming lessons might increase the risk 
of drowning by increasing exposure and decreasing children's fear of 
the water. Among adolescents, there is some indirect evidence that more 
skilled swimmers may be at increased risk of drowning. Better swimmers 
are likely to participate in more water-related activities and may feel 
confident enough to swim in higher risk settings, such as remote 
natural bodies of water with no lifeguards present. The findings from 
this study will provide valuable information concerning risk and 
protective factors for childhood drownings, information that is crucial 
in directing future preventive efforts. The proposed study will utilize 
a case-control methodology to identify associations between behavioral 
and environmental factors and the risk of drowning.
    Interviews will be conducted with parents/guardians of 1272 
children (424 cases and 848 controls.) The case interview and the 
control interview are estimated to take 40 minutes to complete. 
Additionally, a short, 10 minute questionnaire will be administered to 
200 adolescents ages 14-19 years to assess risk behaviors related to 
water activities. Controls will be identified through random-digit 
dialing. It is estimated that 32,358 households will need to be 
screened (at 5 minutes per screener) to identify the 848 controls. 
Screening and study interviews will be conducted over a 27-month study 
period. There are no Capital Costs, Operating Costs and/or Maintenance 
Costs to report.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                     Number of     Frequency of    Average hours    Total hours     Annual hour
       Type of respondent           respondents      response      per response       burden          burden
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Respondents to Parent/Guardian               424               1          0.667            282.8             126
 Case Interview.................
Respondents to RDD Screener.....          32,358               1          0.0835          2701.8            1201
Respondents to Control Interview             848               1          0.667            565.6             251
Respondents to Adolescent                    200               1          0.167             33.4              15
 Interview......................
                                 -----------------
    Total.......................  ..............  ..............  ..............         3,583.6           1,593
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Request for Comments

    Written comments and/or suggestions from the public and affected 
agencies should address one or more of the following points: (1) 
Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the 
proper performance of the function of the agency, including whether the 
information will have practical utility; (2) The accuracy of the 
agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of 
information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions 
used; (3) Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected; and (4) Ways to minimize the burden of the 
collection of information on those who are to respond, including the 
use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other 
technological collection techniques or other forms of information 
technology.

Direct Comments to OMB

    Written comments and/or suggestions regarding the item(s) contained 
in this notice, especially regarding the estimated public burden and 
associated response time, should be directed to the: Office of 
Management and Budget, Office of Regulatory Affairs, New Executive 
Office Building, Room 10235, Washington, DC 20503, Attention: Desk 
Officer for NIH. To request more information on the proposed project or 
to obtain a copy of the data collection plans and instruments, contact: 
Charles Grewe, Contracting Officer, NICHD, NIH. Address: 6100 Executive 
Blvd., Suite 7A07, Bethesda, MD 20892-7510; e-mail address 
[email protected]; Phone: (303) 496-4611 (collect calls cannot be 
accepted).
    Comments Due Date: Comments regarding this information collection 
are best assured of having their full effect if received within 30-days 
of the date of this publication.

    Dated: October 9, 2002.
Kathleen Wilburn,
Project Clearance Liaison, NICHD, National Institutes of Health.
[FR Doc. 02-26699 Filed 10-18-02; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4140-01-M