Graceful Parenting in Austin

I posted before about being Safe Enough as a parent and part of what that means to me is learning a little more as you go, because you never can know it all.

We had a couple over for dinner, well, for walking to the burger place down the street, which is how we make dinner for our guests now that we have a small baby. T.H. is a firefighter and firefighters double as EMTs, so I figured he has see his share of children’s accidents, so I ask him, “T.H., what are your top safety tips for kids?” and this is what he said.

(Note: This is not a scientific or comprehensive safety plan, this is only what my friend T.H. said. For a more official information, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has a page on childhood injuries, risks and prevention.)

#1 - Drowning
T.H. said one of the leading causes of children’s death is drowning. Drowning is usually silent and it happens in just minutes. It can happen at home in a bathtub or in a crowded pool. It can happen in the time it takes to answer a phone call or go to the bathroom.

T.H. said the most important thing parents can do is to be very aware of the danger in any body of water and to not leave a child alone near water for even a short time. Younger kids are especially vulnerable, since they have all of the curiosity and less of the experience. When kids reach four or five, swimming lessons help. Educating your kids is important too. T.H. uses on-the-spot, mini-safety-quizes with his daughter, asking questions like “Is it OK to get into the swimming pool when the adults are in the house?” She probably knows the answers already, and she might get annoyed with her Dad sometimes, but he wants to remind her.

For more information about drowning, see the American Academy of Pediatrics website.

#2 - Improper Use of Car Seats
T.H. said car accidents with kids are common and many of the times the child is in a car seat, but it hasn’t been installed properly. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) research shows that as many as 82 percent of all car seats are improperly installed and used. When Baby Girl was born, we went to a car seat inspection and even though my husband and I think we are smart and good with mechanical devices, we didn’t have ours installed correctly. SeatCheck is a national campaign to help parents properly secure their children in cars. They provide a free child safety seat inspection locator service on the web and by phone at 1-866-SEAT-CHECK.

#3 - No Smoke Detectors
Well, I pretty much got in trouble in my own house for this one. I explained my smoke detector system to T.H. We have one smoke detector in the kitchen. It isn’t mounted anywhere, it just sits on top of the fridge. When it goes off when we cook, I set it outside and most of the time, maybe a few days later, I remember to bring it back in the house. And there is only one smoke detector, because house fires start in the kitchen, right?

T.H. is a reasonable and level-headed guy, but I could see that he was making an effort to maintain his composure when he said, very slowly and seriously, “No, no, no, no, no, no.”

He said not all fires start in the kitchen, they can start in any room of the house. There should be a smoke detector in every bedroom and in common areas. The newer smoke detectors have a pause button that you can push to quiet an unnecessary alarm. They also beep when a battery isn’t installed. He said it isn’t that the chance of a fire is so great, it is that smoke detectors are so cheap and easy and if a fire does happen, you really, really, really need them.

Then I had a question for T.H. What about SIDS? When Baby Girl was born, we got information from the hospital, the pediatrician and web sites and they all had different lists of what to do to prevent SIDS and it seemed like the only real prevention is to keep her awake until she is 6 months old.

T. H. got serious again and very quiet, especially for him. He said he didn’t have anything to add to what the experts say. He looked sad and I imagined that this must be the hardest call of all for an EMT. To try to save a brand new baby and to be with the parents if nothing can be done.

So, these are EMT Safety Tips from T.H. Do you have a Top Safety Tip, one that is important to you?