June is National Safety Month
Safe Kids Northeast Florida/Wolfson Children's Hospital Reminds Parents Summer Is "Trauma Season"

Jacksonville, Florida, June 7, 2006 -- Every summer, approximately 2.7 million children in the United States ages 14 and under are treated in emergency rooms for accidental injuries, and nearly 3,000 die. Echoing the theme of National Safety Month 2006, "Making Our World a Safer Place," Safe Kids Northeast Florida and its lead organization, Wolfson Children's Hospital, remind parents and caregivers that more children are accidentally injured in the summer than any other time of year, with about 42 percent of fatal injuries occurring between May 1 and August 31.

"Summer is trauma season," says Cynthia Dennis, RN, Safe Kids Northeast Florida coordinator. "That's when kids are most likely to be riding a bike, swimming, crossing streets and spending time at the playground."

Safe Kids Northeast Florida encourages age-appropriate outdoor activities, but also urges appropriate precautions and active supervision. "Simply being near your child is not necessarily supervising," says Dennis. "A supervised child is in sight and in reach at all times, with your undivided attention focused on the child."

Parents and caregivers should know -- and know how to minimize -- the risks associated with:

• Swimming. Pools should be surrounded by isolation fences with self-latching gates, and drains should be fitted with safety covers to prevent entrapment and automatic shut-off systems for drains that become obstructed. Swimming lessons and inflatable swimming aids do not prevent drowning; there is no substitute for active supervision. Keep a phone handy and know infant and child CPR. Pediatric CPR classes are available at Baptist Health campuses every month. Call 202-BABY to register.
• Bicycling. Every cyclist needs to wear a properly fitted bike helmet. Ask the staff of a bike shop to show your child how to wear and adjust a helmet for maximum safety. Kids should ride bikes of appropriate size and should not ride without supervision until they have demonstrated safe riding habits and good judgment.
• Playgrounds. Grass, soil and asphalt are not safe surfaces for playground equipment; the ground should be covered 12 inches deep with mulch, shredded rubber or fine sand. Jewelry, bike helmets and drawstrings in apparel can get caught on playground equipment and strangle a child.
• Traffic. Teach your children to use crosswalks and walk signals when available, and to cross only after looking both ways. Don't let kids play in a driveway - they could be invisible to drivers.
• Climbing and falls. Windows above the first floor should be equipped with window guards - a screen does not prevent falls. Supervise children around open windows; about 5,000 kids each year are seriously injured by falling out of windows onto hard surfaces.

For more information about summer safety, visit Safe Kids. National Safety Month is coordinated by the National Safety Council.