Evaluating the Quality of YouTube Educational Videos on Kangaroo Care for Newborns: An Observational Study

Aim: Although YouTube is now a popular health education platform, the quality and veracity of its content is highly variable.Videos on kangaroo care (KC) for newborns, for example, are created both by medical professionals and non-professionals, eliciting the concern that the provided information might be not trustworthy and effective.This study aimed to evaluate the quality, engagement, and content reliability of YouTube videos on KC, comparing videos produced by medical professionals and non-professionals. Materials and Methods:The study analyzed 100 eligible YouTube videos.Modified DISCERN (mDISCERN) instrument name and global quality scale (GQS) scores were used to assess video quality, and presenter types (e.g., medical professionals, parents, non-governmental organization representatives) and video features (video length, use of animation, etc.) were recorded.Views, likes, and comments were also examined for viewer engagement metrics.Results: Video content uploaded by medical professionals had higher mDISCERN and GQS scores than non-professionals (p<0.05).Views and likes were similar in both groups.Non-professional videos were found to have similar viewer engagement although less detailed and shorter.The use of animations and graphics was found to increase the understandability of the videos, and approximately half of the videos were found to have no existing annotations. Conclusion:The study found that videos created by medical professionals were more credible and effective at conveying accurate health information.Despite this, demand for content-rich videos in the healthcare industry was notable.Future efforts to improve video quality and digital literacy will be critical to increase the credibility of health-related content on YouTube.