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| Car Seat Safety |
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by Monika B. Pis, PhD, CPNP - July 1, 2011
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According to the Department of Transportation, in 2008, 968 children 14 years of age and younger died in motor vehicle crashes, and about 168, 000 were injured.
Many of those deaths and injuries might be contributed to children not being seated in a safety car seat, or the restraint seats not being installed properly. In fact, one study reported that 72% of almost 3,500 car and booster seats were used in a way that increased a child’s risk of injury during an accident!
Considering that using appropriate safety seats in passenger cars reduces the risk of death by 71% for infants, and by 54% for children 1-4 years of age, it is extremely important that parents buy safety seats that are appropriate for weigh, age, and the vehicle driven. In addition, parents need to know how to install a restraint seat properly to assure safety of their children.
If your patients cannot afford a car safety seat for their child, they can contact the hospital at which their child was born, or the nearest state police station. I have referred many of my patients to the local state police station when they were in need for a car or booster seat but could not afford one, and they received one without charge.
Children need to ride in a rear-facing seat until age 2 years. The old recommendation was until age 1 year and 20 pounds. However, recent research indicates that children under 2 years of age are 75% less likely to die or experience a serious injury when rear facing. Therefore, the American Academy of Pediatrics has changed the recommendation.
A child should ride facing the rear in an infant car seat or convertible seat for as long as possible. An infant seat should be changed to a convertible seat when an infant reaches the maximum height and weight for that infant seat. Typically, it is when the infant’s head is within 1 inch of the top of the seat, and the baby weighs between 22 and 32 pounds.
To assure every child’s safety, health care providers should advise parents to have their children ride facing the rear until they reach the maximum height and weight for the seat’s model or after the second birthday, whichever comes last.
Please watch this video about benefits of rear versus front facing riding for children younger than 2 years of age:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8gU9zzCGA8
Resources:
Car safety seat recalls
http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/recalls/childseat.cfm
To find a child passenger safety inspection station, go to:1-866-SEAT-CHECK
www.seatcheck.org
Dr. Monika Pis is the Editor in Chief of the health, safety, and nutrition sections of Plugged in Parents. She is a pediatric nurse practitioner with a doctoral degree earned at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. She has provided health care to infants, children, and adolescents for close to a decade.
Dr. Monika’s special interests include nutrition, physical activity, and obesity. Since her motto is, “Prevention is the best medicine," teaching her patients the steps to being healthy is one of her professional missions.
The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
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