Accident Prevention

Accidents are the leading cause of death in children and adolescents. Most of these deaths are preventable. Part of our job as a pediatrician in your child’s health supervision is stressing accident prevention. A few simple measures taken now to prevent accidents can save your child’s life or prevent major injuries. Accident prevention for your child should begin on the day he or she is born.

Young Infant (Birth to Six Months)

Small objects, baby powder, and cleansers should be kept away from the baby so that he/she may not ingest these materials. Small toys should be checked for vulnerability to breakage and small loose parts that can be pulled off and swallowed.

We generally discourage the purchase of an infant walker because of the risk of injury. If one is purchased anyway, we recommend constant supervision for your child while in the infant walker, especially around stairs. The use of an infant walker will not help your child walk alone at an earlier age.

It is important to check your home for possible physical hazards such as stairs, fireplace hearths, and sharp table edges. The child should be protected from these hazards by gates and padding as appropriate. We discourage the use of certain expandable type gates because of the danger of strangulation. We recommend that you take a crawling tour of your home, looking for possible hazards that your infant can get into. Electrical outlets should have plugs placed, cabinet doors should have locks. Poisons, cleaning products, furniture polish, and toxic material should be placed well out of the reach of the infant. Other possible hazards should be identified and secured. We suggest using a playpen as an “island of safety”.

Infants should be protected from the possibility of drowning in a swimming pool. In addition, an infant should never be left alone in the bathtub.

Crib side rails should always be kept up when the infant is unattended. Crib bumpers are recommended. The distance between the crib slats should be less then 2-3/8 inches. You should avoid mobiles and toys with long strings, cradle gyms that are not securely suspended, and small objects in the crib. Avoid pillows, stuffed animals or thick comforters in the crib. These can be a cause of suffocation.

General Safety Guidelines:

- Never leave your infant alone with young siblings or pets
- Your water heater thermostat should be set at 120 degrees Fahrenheit or less. This is a little below the normal setting.
- Never leave your infant alone in a house or a car unattended.
- Do not shake or jiggle your baby’s head vigorously.
- Babysitters should be carefully selected.
- Infant jewelry such as earrings, necklaces, rings, and other types of jewelry are not recommended.
- Do not drink hot liquids or smoke cigarettes while holding your child because you could accidentally burn your child.
- Do not use an infant feeder to feed your child baby food or semi-solid food because of the risk of choking and aspiration of food into the trachea.
- Do not lay your infant on his/her abdomen. It is recommended that you lay the infant on his/her back or side. This is to prevent the risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
- We recommend that you remove strings from infant’s nightgowns to prevent possible strangulation.

Older Infant (Nine to Twelve Months)

The incidence of accidental poisoning greatly increases by this age. Poisons and toxic substances should be secure. A bottle of Syrup of Ipecac should be kept in the home but should only be used on the advice of a physician. In case of poisoning, refer to the poisoning section of this handbook. In the Jackson Metro Area, the phone number for the Poison Control Center is 354-7660. Never place a poisonous substance in a container that normally would hold food or beverages.

Infants and children should not ride on machinery with parents. This includes lawn tractors, lawn mowers, all-terrain vehicles, and other similar machinery.

Foods such as nuts, bacon, popcorn, chewing gum, hard candy, saltine crackers, and “hot dog-like” meats are dangerous because they can be aspirated into the lungs. They should never be given to young children.

Plastic bags and uninflated balloons can also cause aspiration and/or suffocation. Your young child should not be allowed to play with these.

Young Children (Over the Age of One)

All outside play near the street or driveway should be strictly supervised. Be especially careful when backing out of the driveway. Other measures concerning car safety, poisoning, drowning prevention, and burn prevention, as mentioned before, also apply to this age group.

Preschool Children (Three Years and Older)

Keep knives and other sharp objects out of reach.

Teach your child the danger of following a ball or an animal into the street, but do not depend upon your child’s remembering such instructions. The child playing near the street should be closely supervised.

Advise your child to be careful around strange dogs.

It is a good idea to begin to teach your child to swim at this age. Even though your child may know how to swim, he or she is notwater-safe at this age. Close supervision while swimming is a must.

Your child should be taught his/her name, parent’s name, address, and telephone number.

Additionally, your child should be taught not to go with strangers or to accept any food or candy from strangers.

Your child should be taught what to do in case of a fire in the home.

Young School-Aged Child

Gun Safety: Gunshots are a main cause of trauma and death in children. Firearms should never be available to or accessible by children. If you do have a gun or guns, there are definite safety precautions which should be observed.

• Store ammunition and weapons separately.
• Keep all weapons in a locked area which is not accessible to children.
• Each gun should be kept unloaded with a trigger lock in place.
• These same precautions should be followed with firearms in vehicles and purses.
• All children (and adults, too!) should take a Hunter’s safety course.

Scooter Safety: Scooters are a great way for kids to get exercise and have fun, but it’s important to make sure that safety comes first. The following are some safety precautions to use with scooters:

• Scooters should only be used on paved, off-road surfaces. Stay away from sand, gravel, water, and cars.
• Make sure your child uses a helmet, elbow pads, and knee pads.

Your child should practice bicycle, skating, and skateboard safety. A bicycle helmet is a must when riding bicycles or scooters, skating or skateboarding. Other safety measures mentioned earlier still apply to this age.

Teen Years

Most serious accidents during the teenage years involve the mixture of automobiles and alcohol and/or drugs. Of course, we do not recommend the use of alcohol or drugs.

Motorized all-terrain vehicles and motorcycles are particularly dangerous. Their use is strongly discouraged. If they are ridden, a helmet and a safety course are strongly recommended.

Suicide and unwanted pregnancies are major health problems in adolescents. Sexual promiscuity can result in venereal diseases and AIDS.

Open, honest lines of communication between parent and child during this time of transition are extremely important to help teenagers avoid disastrous life-style choices. Withdrawal, acting out, changes in behavior and/or friends should never be ignored. These may be warning signs that your teenager is undergoing stress. Parental involvement in a teenager’s life can be a gratifying and helpful experience, both for the teenager and the parent. You should stay involved in your child’s life, especially during this time by keeping your communication lines wide open.

Fireworks Safety: Prevent Blindness America warns that there is no safe way for nonprofessionals to use fireworks. It is only safe to enjoy the splendor and excitement of fireworks at a professional display.

Fireworks statistics show:

• 72 percent of the victims were male.
• The greatest number of eye injuries were associated with rockets.
• Sparklers are the second highest cause of fireworks injuries requiring trips to the emergency room. Sparklers can heat up to 1800 degrees Fahrenheit, hot enough to melt gold.
• From 1980-1994, fireworks accounted for 29 fires, 65 explosions, and 114 deaths. The victims of these accidents ranged in ages from 4 months to 88 years old.
• Misuse caused 60 percent of injuries.
• Data from the United States Eye Injury Registry shows that bystanders are more often injured by fireworks than operators themselves.
• 44 percent of the injured are children ages 19 years old and under.

If an accident does occur which involves the eye, what can you do right away to minimize the damage to the eye? These actions can help save your child’s sight.

• Do not delay medical attention even for seemingly mild injuries. “Mildly” damaged areas can worsen and end in serious vision loss, even blindness, that might not have happened if treatment had occurred immediately.
• Stay calm, do not panic; keep the child as calm as possible. Do not rub the eye. If any tissue is torn, rubbing might push out the eye’s contents and cause more damage. Trying to rub the eye is an automatic response to pain, but pressure will only do more harm. Take the child’s hand from his or her face.
• Do not attempt to rinse out the eye. This can be even more damaging than rubbing.
• Shield the eye from pressure. Tape or secure the bottom of a foam cup, milk carton, or similar shield against the bones surrounding the eye: brow, cheek, and bridge of the nose.
• Avoid giving aspirin or ibuprofen (or other non-steroid, anti-inflammatory drugs, called “N-SAIDS”) to try to reduce the pain. They thin the blood and might increase bleeding. Acetaminophen is the over-the-counter drug of choice. Unfortunately, non-prescription painkillers will not be of much help. It is better to by-pass the drugstore or medicine cabinet and get to the emergency room right away.
• Do not apply ointment or any medication. It is probably not sterile. Also, ointments make the eye area slippery. This could slow the doctor’s examination at a time when every second counts.
• Above all, do not let your child play with fireworks. Do not use them yourself and keep family members away from those who do. Even sparklers are dangerous. They burn at up to 1800 degrees Fahrenheit – hot enough to melt gold.

Accident prevention for your child is a life-long endeavor. Common sense and effort go a long way to ensure that your child’s life will be a long healthy one.