| |
NEWS RELEASES
HOUSTON (June 28, 2006) –
Houston parents aren’t as aware as other families across the country
that a child can drown in as little as 2 inches of water, according
to survey findings released by Texas Children’s Hospital today, the
consequences of which can be seen in the escalating number of local drownings and
near-drownings.
Sixteen Houston-area children have drowned so far in 2006 compared
with 20 during all of last year.
In addition, Houston parents lag behind parents nationally in
knowing to use automobile
booster seats until children are 8 years old or 80 pounds,
according to the survey, which was conducted to measure parents’
knowledge of child safety issues and their use of child proofing
products at home.
“Summer road trips, along with visits to area pools and playgrounds,
can be dangerous and result in injury, or worse, if parents don’t
take the necessary precautions,” said Dr.
Desiree Evans, a pediatrician at Texas
Children’s Pediatric Associates – Cullen.
A national survey of 1,000 parents nationwide and 200 in Houston
found that many parents don’t always have the information they need
to keep their children safe. Commissioned by Get
on Board with Child Safety, a national partnership between Safety
1st and theNational
Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related Institutions,
the survey reveals significant parental knowledge gaps that, if
closed, could result in fewer injuries and deaths to children. For
example:
• Only 58 percent of Houston parents know that a child can drown in
as little as 2 inches of water, compared to 68 percent of those
surveyed nationwide.
• Only 39 percent of Houston parents know that it is safest for
children to use booster seats until they are 8 years old or 80
pounds, 9 percent less than parents nationwide.
• Less than half of Houston parents know falls are the leading cause
of unintentional injuries to babies and children under 5 years old.
Other survey results show that only 30 percent of Houston parents
know children should wait until they are 13 years old to sit in the
front seat of a car. Also, a large percentage of Houston parents do
not purchase safety devices: crib rail guards (63 percent), power
strip/adapter covers (69 percent), bed rails (60 percent) and
doorknob covers (55 percent).
As a participating children’s hospital in Get on Board with Child
Safety, Texas Children’s Hospital is launching its Safe
Summer Campaign with a list of summer tips to help parents keep
their kids safer at home, at the playground, on the road and at the
pool.
“Every day kids in Houston arrive in the emergency room with
injuries that are avoidable. There are simple things that parents
can do to help make this summer a safe one,” said Susan Hirtz,
manager of Texas
Children’s Center for Childhood Injury Prevention. “For example,
making sure your child is within your sight and reach at all times
when around water can be the difference between life and death.”
Some of the tips include:
• Install gates around pools and never leave children unattended
while playing around the pool. Use doorknob covers that prevent your
toddlers from getting out of the house and into water unattended.
• Actively supervise any child in or near water. Give swimmers your
undivided attention – no talking, eating, reading, taking care of
another child or other distracting activities. Be within arm’s reach
of toddlers in the water.
• Keep your children in booster seats until they are 8 years old or
80 pounds. Your child is approximately half as likely to be
seriously injured in an accident when using a booster seat with a
seat belt instead of just using a belt.
• Require your kids to wear helmets not just for bike riding, but
also for scooters, skateboarding and rollerblading.
• Children often suffer injury on trampolines. Doctors recommend
they not be used in backyards. But if you insist, only allow one
child to use it at a time and prohibit dangerous somersaults.
About the survey
Get on Board with Child Safety sponsored a nationwide online survey
of 1,000 parents with a child aged 3 or under, with an oversample of
200 parents in Houston with a child 5 years old or younger. Get on
Board with Child Safety’s online survey of parents of children age 0
to 3 years was conducted between March 16 and April 3, 2006. Most
respondents were women, a proportion that is typical of online
parent surveys.
Texas Children's Hospital
Texas Children’s Hospital is an active member of Get on Board with
Child Safety, a nationwide initiative spearheaded by Safety 1st and
The National Association of Children’s Hospitals and Related
Institutions, that works to educate families about the steps they
can take to avoid unintentional injuries at home and on the road.
Texas Children’s also performs a variety of community services in
the form of health screenings, special events and educational
programs aimed at building and supporting a community of healthy
children.
|
|
