The best way to keep children safe is to teach them practices they can use in their everyday lives. The Injury Prevention Program at MemorialCare Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach is committed to keeping children and families safe by providing safety education materials, teaching safety classes and going out into the community to teach kids how to fit helmets properly. The Injury Prevention team also attends health fairs and provides car seats to qualifying families for their newborns.
The educational materials that the Injury Prevention Program distributes promotes includes bicycle, pedestrian, and car seat safety - the number one causes of injuries amongst children that are seen by the Trauma Center at Miller Children’s & Women’s. The Trauma Center has seen more than 100 patients over the last few months related to these injuries and expects to see an increase as school concludes and the weather gets warmer. By educating the community on proper street and pedestrian safety, the Injury Prevention Program helps reduce the number of patients seen by the Trauma Center for accidents.
“It’s very rewarding to provide these educational materials to children and families since we know it’ll help keep them safe,” says Jennifer Rodriguez, coordinator, Injury Prevention Program. “These materials are filled with useful information, such as the correct way to set up and adjust a car seat as well as the proper guidelines for crossing the road as a pedestrian, so parents can teach their children to be safe in order to prevent an accident.”
For parents, teenagers, and families that have a little bit more time, the Injury Prevention Program staff holds in-depth classes and seminars to teach the community about topics such as bike and pedestrian safety, firework safety, teen driving safety, and infant CPR.
“The best treatment for auto vs pedestrian injuries is prevention, and the key to preventing trauma is education,” says Rodriguez. “As summer rolls around, more children and families engage in outdoor activities, so we want to make sure we keep everyone safe by teaching them steps they can take to keep themselves safe and those around them safe.”
