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New Survey Reveals Top Misperceptions Parents Have When Managing Child’s Fever

As a mother, you have probably experienced waking up in the middle of the night to the whimper from your child’s room, calling for ‘Mommy’. As you check in on your child, you find that his forehead is warm and quickly discover that he has a fever. Though your immediate reaction may be of worry and concern, you question what you should do next.

Thus, this cold and flu season, to help ease parents’ anxiety, Children’s Advil is launching an educational Fever Relief program that highlights common misperceptions and offers helpful tips, when it comes to managing your child’s fever.

Accordingly, two new national surveys of parents and pediatricians revealed that most parents feel anxious, helpless, and fearful when facing a child’s fever and frequently make mistakes when treating their child. Findings from the “Dose of Reality” survey by Pfizer Consumer Healthcare, makers of Children’s Advil®, include:

Top Misperceptions Parents Have When Managing Child’s Fever

  • More than half of parents (52 percent) have sent their kids back to school or daycare within 24 hours of being fever-free
  • Nearly a quarter of parents (23%) admit to giving their child an adult over-the-counter medication and guessing at the dose
  • More than half of parents (52 percent) report waking their sick child up in the middle of the night to give them medicine.
  • More than one-third of parents (36%) base the dose they give their child on age rather than weight
  • Majority (94%) of pediatricians feel that parents need more education on fever management

 

*The information and survey statistics have all been provided by Children’s Advil/Pfizer.

About Julee Morrison

Julee Morrison is an author and writer with over 35 years of experience in parenting and family recipes. She’s the author of four cookbooks: The Instant Pot College Cookbook, The How-To Cookbook for Teens, The Complete Cookbook for Teens, and The Complete College Cookbook.Available on Amazon,

Her work has appeared in The LA Times, Disney’s Family Fun Magazine, Bon Appétit, Weight Watchers Magazine, All You, Scholastic Parent & Child, and more.

Her article "My Toddler Stood on Elvis' Grave and Scaled Over Boulders to Get to a Dinosaur" appeared on AP News, and her parenting piece “The Sly Way I Cured My Child's Lying Habit” was featured on PopSugar.

Outside of writing, Julee enjoys baking, reading, collecting crystals, and spending time with her family. You can find more of her work at Mommy’s Memorandum.