Home Emergencies: preparadness and response Injury prevention Child protection HIV and AIDS Malaria Hygiene Coughs, colds and more serious illnesses Diarrhoea Immunization Nutrition and growth Breastfeeding Child development and early learning Safe motherhood and newborn health Timing births

The Mother and Child Health and Education Trust

 

Connect

Follow MotherChild on Twitter  Connect with MotherChild on Facebook  Subscribe to HealthPhone on YouTube
Facts for Life

Injury prevention

Key Messages: What every health worker, family and community has a right to know

 

Why it is important - All key messages - First aid advice - Resources

  1. Many serious injuries can be prevented if parents and other caregivers supervise children carefully and keep their environment safe.
  2. Young children are at risk on or near roads. They should not play on or near the road and should always have someone older with them when they are near or crossing a road. They should wear a helmet when on a bicycle or motorcycle and should be securely strapped into an age-appropriate child restraint when being transported in a vehicle.
  3. Children can drown in less than two minutes and in a very small amount of water, even in a bathtub. They should never be left alone in or near water.
  4. Burns can be prevented by keeping children away from fires, cooking stoves, hot liquids and foods, and exposed electric wires.
  5. Falls are a major cause of injury for young children. Stairs, balconies, roofs, windows, and play and sleeping areas should be made secure, using barriers with vertical bars to protect children from falling.
  6. Medicines, poisons, insecticides, bleach, acids and liquid fertilizers and fuels, such as paraffin (kerosene), should be stored carefully out of children's sight and reach. Dangerous substances should be stored in clearly marked containers and never in drinking bottles. Child-resistant closures, where available, should be used on the containers of poisonous products.
  7. Knives, scissors, sharp or pointed objects and broken glass can cause serious injuries. These objects should be kept out of children's reach. Plastic bags, which can cause suffocation, should be kept away from young children.
  8. Young children like to put things in their mouths. To prevent choking, small objects, such as coins, nuts and buttons, should be kept out of their reach. Children's foods should be cut into small pieces that can be easily chewed and swallowed.

Foreword  •  Purpose  •  Structure  •  Essential Messages  •  Guide for Using Facts for Life   •  Glossary  •  Contact



The Mother and Child Health and Education Trust
a U.S. 501(c)(3) non profit organization
our portals and sites
HealthPhone™ Mobile Apps
HealthPhone™
Guide to Child Care
imagine
Community Video
HealthRadio
Kyunki-Jeena Issi Ka Naam Hai
Rehydration Project
Successful Breastfeeding
Disaster Relief
Community Radio
AIDS action
Polio Free
Untouchability
Health Education to Villages
Breast Crawl
Education for Girls
A Simple Solution
Diarrhoea: 7 Point Plan
HIV and Breastfeeding
Rights of the Child
Mother and Child Nutrition
Mother and Child Health
Facts for Life
Education for Boys
Child Protector
HealthTube
Ebola Resources