Jacqui B. came to talk to our group about home safety. She has been a registered nurse for 15 yrs and worked in the ER, homecare, and at Salem Pediatric Clinic. She is a former MOPS coordinator and member.She first showed us a very touching video about the tragic hazard of window falls that was shown on CBS, http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=6417442n
Statistics:
4,000 children are injured.yr by window injuries
12 die/ yr
Parker (child in video), died in spring 2009
In 2007, 12 children were injured every minute
Every 101 min, a child dies of unintentional injury
Child injury prevention is the solution and could reduce injuries by 45%
Largest killer of children is unintentional injury
Falls accounted for 61% of injuries in the ER
TOP 5 Causes of Fatal Child Injury
Motor vehicle crash
Suffocation
Drowning
Fire/burn
Transport/other (ATVs)
TOP 5 Non-Fatal Child Injury
Falls
Motor Vehicle crash
Poisoning
Struck by/against object
Bike accident
Fall Prevention Tips
- Stair gates
- Secure furniture to wall
- Do not leave baby unintended on furniture
- Do not put toys up where kids climb to get them
- "No play zone" 2ft from window
- Separate play areas of children of different ages
Ages 5-9
- Use age appropriate equipment
- Furniture away from windows (children pretend to fly)
- No play zone 2 ft from window
A great resource for safety equipment and general children's safety is the Safety Store and Resource Center at Legacy Emanuel www.legacyhealthy.org/safetystore
One last tip, when going over fire safety in your house, show your child a picture of what a fire fighter really looks like all suited up, so they won't be afraid if ever caught in a real fire.
