By Megan LeNoir
There are always conversations regarding safety in the workplace and making sure
we stay safe at work so we can go home to our family and friends.
But do we put as much thought into safety at home, especially for our young people.
The residential home is second only to the road as the location of most accidental deaths in Australia (Allianz)
Children under five years old are at greater risk of injury. Young children are often unable to assess risks for themselves, relying heavily on the people around them to help keep them safe.
When you think about it, heights, space and structures are built for adult use and comfort, but these often present hazards to children.
The main causes of child deaths from unintentional injury are:
- Transport related (car crashes and driveway run-overs)
- Drowning (in particular swimming pools)
- Unsafe sleeping environments
- Strangulations / suffocation (entrapment in a cabinet, strangulation by a window blind cord)
- Crush injuries (large objects falling onto a child).
Hospitalisation of young children from unintentional injury is most commonly the result of:
- Falls (from nursery furniture, beds, chairs and in the backyard from playground equipment)
- Burns and scalds (from hot drinks and food, liquids, hot objects).
- Vehicle accidents (most young children who die, or are injured, were not properly restrained in the car)
- Near drowning
- Dog bites (mostly by dogs known to the child in the home environment)
- Choking (food or small objects)
- Pedestrian injuries.
These are only the events we know about!
So what can we do to improve the situation? Well for a start, how about applying things we do at work i.e. identify the hazards, identify how they can be addressed and put the controls in place.
Her is a link to a ‘Parents Guide to Kidsafe Homes’ because as they say, child safety is no accident.