Fall Safety

Each year approximately 18 children die from window fall-related injuries and an estimated 4,700 children are sent to hospital emergency rooms.

If you could make one place a safe haven for your children, where would it be? For many parents, the is answer is in their homes. Yet research shows more than 4.5 million children are injured in the home ever year.

Taking simple prevention measures and closely supervising your children can help protect them from common household hazards.

Falls are the leading cause of unintentional injury for children. Children ages 14 and under account for one-third of all fall-related visits to hospital emergency rooms. More than half of all nonfatal injuries to children are associated with falls.

window falls:

• Toddlers are most at risk from window-related falls (ages 1-4 years of age).
• The majority of window fall-related deaths (70 percent) occur during the spring and summer months.
• Prevention Tips:
  • Move chairs, cribs and other
    furniture away from windows.
  • Never open a window more than
    5 inches.
  • Window guards/locks are effective in preventing falls. These devices can be found at your local hardware stores and range in price from less than one dollar to fifty dollars.
  • Supervision is key.

playground/ backyard falls:

• Older children tend to suffer from playground equipment-related falls (school age).
• More than 70 percent of playground-related injuries involve falls to the surface, and 10 percent involve falls onto equipment.
• Backyard hazards include tree/shrubs, rockery, and other surfaces associated with height.
• Prevention Tips:
  • Protective surfacing under and around playground equipment can prevent the incidence and reduce the severity of fall-related injuries.
  • Supervision is key.