Safety Tips and Injury Prevention

A booster seat and safety belt might save your little one's life

It’s a day like any other. You didn’t wake up and make plans to be taken by MedEvac to the Trauma Unit. But maybe you should have. Injury from trauma happens every four seconds. How can you possibly avoid it? Well, the top two things that cause trauma are crashes and falls. In other words, preventable incidents. Instead of planning your trip to the trauma unit, how about making some simple plans that might help you avoid injury. A little knowledge, a little common sense and just a little bit of planning are all it takes to make a big difference in your chances of becoming a statistic.

Lehigh Valley Hospital wants to make sure that you stay safe. That’s why we have put together some simple, common-sense tips to help you avoid the two most common occurances that lead to Trauma Unit emergencies.

Avoid Automobile Crashes!

Motor-vehicle crashes are the leading cause of traumatic death of those age 1-45. Nearly 45,000 people die annually from highway crashes. On the bright side, an estimated 20,000 lives are saved each year by wearing seat belts. Read on for more ways to stay safe on the road.

Buckle Up! According to the CDC (Center for Disease Control) safety belts can reduce the risk of serious injury to the head, chest, and extremities by an estimated 50-83% and fatalities by 45-60%

Don’t Drink (or Use Drugs) and Drive NHTSA (National Highway Traffic Safety Administration) statistics show that 39% of fatal crashes involve alcohol. That number soars to 76% between the hours of midnight to 6 a.m. Remember: even small amounts of alcohol can cause impairment.

Read Your Labels Medications that cause drowsiness can leave you as impaired as drinking alcohol. Make sure that you know the side effects of any medications (including OTCs) that you are taking.

Maintain Your Car Faulty brakes, broken lights or blinkers, and other vehicular malfunctions can all contribute to traffic accidents.

Obey Posted Speed Limits Excess speed can contribute to both the frequency and severity of motor vehicle crashes. At higher speeds, additional time and distance is needed to stop or redirect your vehicle. Speeding reduces your ability to react to emergencies, unsafe driving by others, roadway hazards, vehicle system failures (such as tire blow-outs), or hazardous weather conditions.

Don’t Drive While Tired The NHTSA reports that each year falling asleep while driving is responsible for at least 100,000 automobile crashes, 40,000 injuries, and 1550 fatalities.

Avoid Distractions Distractions are anything that diverts your attention from the road—even if only on an unconscious level. Unsafe distractions include: talking on your cell phone, supervising unrestrained children and pets, fiddling with your radio or climate control, trying to read directions, arguing with a passenger, drinking or eating, and on and on. If you can’t give the road your full attention, pull over.

Use Your Head The best way to avoid a serious accident is to pay attention, plan ahead, and use your common sense. Remember, you may follow all of the rules and maintain the highest levels of safety, but you can’t control the other drivers on the road. Be alert. Be prepared to react. Expect the unexpected. And take as many precautions for your own safety as possible.

Special Concerns for Children

You can reduce the risk of children being killed or injured in a motor vehicle crash if you follow a few simple safety tips.

Use Car Seats Infants should ride in rear-facing child safety seats until they weigh 20 pounds AND are one year old. Never place a rear-facing child safety seat in front of an air bag. Toddlers and preschoolers aged 1 to 4 years should ride in a forward-facing child safety seat until they weigh about 40 pounds (usually around age four), or until their ears reach the top of the back of the child safety seat, or their shoulders are above the top seat-strap slots.

Use Booster Seats Children who have outgrown their child safety seats should ride in a booster seat that positions the shoulder belt across the chest and the lap belt low across the upper thighs. Children should use a booster seat until the lap and shoulder belts in the car fit properly, usually when they are at least 4 feet, 10 inches tall and weigh at least 80 pounds. To ride comfortably and safely, children must be able to bend their knees over the edge of the seat while sitting with their backs firmly against the seat back (without slouching). In most cases, this means that children 4 to 8 years old should ride in a booster seat.

Use Safety Belts Children who have outgrown their booster seats should always use a safety belt. The child must be tall enough to sit without slouching, with knees bent at the edge of the seat, with feet on the floor. The lap belt must fit low and tight across the upper thighs. The shoulder belt should rest over the shoulder and across the chest. Never put the shoulder belt under the child's arm or behind the child's back.

Keep Children in the Back Seat All children aged 12 years and younger should ride in the back seat for two important reasons. First, the back seat is generally the safest place in a vehicle during a crash. Second, children sitting in the front seat have been injured and killed by passenger air bags as they inflate in a crash. If your vehicle has a passenger air bag, children aged 12 years and younger should always ride in the back.

Avoid Falling!

According to the CDC, in the United States, one of every three adults 65 years or older falls each year. In fact, falls are the leading cause of injury deaths among people 65 years and older. Here are some tips to help you avoid becoming the victim of an accidental fall.

Exercise Maintain a regular exercise program. Exercise improves strength, balance, and coordination.

Make Living Areas Safer About half of all falls happen in the home. Remove tripping hazards and use non-slip mats in the bathtub and on shower floors. Have grab bars put in next to the toilet and in the tub or shower, and have handrails put in on both sides of all stairs.

Check Your Meds Ask your doctor to review all of your medicines in order to reduce side effects and interactions.

Check Your Eyes Have an eye doctor check your vision each year. Poor vision can increase your risk of falling.

Wear Sensible Shoes Wear properly fitting shoes that provide support. Avoid high or narrow heels, slick bottoms, and slip-ons. P.S.: This doesn’t have to mean ugly shoes. There are a lot of very attractive shoes on the market that are designed for comfort and safety as well as fashion.

Special Concerns for Children

About 2 million emergency room visits each year are the result of childhood falls. The majority of these falls occur at home. Here are some simple tips to help keep your little ones safe and out of the ER.

Supervise Babies Never leave babies alone on furniture—even if they have never rolled over before.

Choose Safe Baby Products Buy only products that meet all federal safety standards. If a product comes equipped with guard rails and safety straps, be sure to not only use them, but to use them properly.

Safeguard Your Home and Yard Secure or remove throw rugs and other tripping hazards. Keep stairs clutter free. Install gates around stairwells and other falling hazards. Use common sense when evaluating the safety of your home.

Require Helmets Any child participating in sports—from bike riding to football—should wear a helmet at all times. 85% of children’s bike deaths could be prevented if all kids wore helmets.

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