Knowledge acquisition and retention when implementing public health awareness training on common pediatric eye conditions in Thailand.

Background: Low awareness of common pediatric eye conditions, such as amblyopia, conjunctivitis, and myopia in rural Chiang Rai, Thailand, prompted the development of a specialized curriculum. This curriculum aimed to provide individuals serving these areas with resources to educate and disseminate information within their communities. Methods: A one-hour curriculum covering the causes, signs, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of amblyopia, conjunctivitis, and myopia was delivered virtually to public health students at a Thai university and in-person to students at this university and rural community members. The in-person seminar included hands-on activities and simulations of these eye conditions. Knowledge acquisition and retention were assessed using pre-tests, immediate post-tests, and one-month post-tests. Results: The seminar was attended by 87 virtual public health students, 111 in-person public health students, and 40 in-person rural community members. All groups showed significant improvement in test scores from pre-test to immediate post-test ( Conclusion: A brief seminar significantly improved understanding and retention of pediatric eye conditions, achieving similar levels of understanding among public health students and rural community members, regardless of initial knowledge on this topic. In-person, hands-on seminars with educational materials in participants' preferred language proved more effective than virtual ones in achieving these improvements.