Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems

Safe Kids Maryland and MIEMSS Joins the Safe Kids USA in Educating Parents & Caregivers

The overall goal of the NEVER LEAVE YOUR CHILD ALONE campaign is to make sure no more children will die in 2010 because they were left unattended in a vehicle. Safe Kids Maryland wants parents and caregivers to take precautions so that this tragedy does not happen to them. It takes only minutes for a child to be at risk of death and serious, permanent injury in a hot car.

For more information:

• May 18, 2010 Press Release – Safe Kids Maryland & MIEMSS – click here
• MIEMSS child passenger & occupant protection project has posted an educational conference call on “Vehicular Hyperthermia in Children” that can be viewed at http://www.miemss.org/EMSCwww/CPSConference.html
• National Media Alert For more information on the Never Leave Your Child Alone Campaign and Safe kids Buckle UP (SKBU) multifaceted child passenger safety program – please visit the Safe Kids USA web site www.safekids.org/nlyca
• Hyperthermia statistics and to see a demonstration of how quickly a car heats up in moderate temperatures, please visit www.ggweather.com/heat

Make it a habit to check the back seat every time you exit and remember to
Never Leave Your Child Alone in a Car.
 

 
Unintentional childhood injury is the number one killer of children ages 14 and younger in the United States. Each year across the country, more than 6,000 children ages 14 and younger are killed, and another 90,000 are permanently disabled, from injuries that many people call “accidents.” However, we have learned that there’s really no such thing as an accident – unintentional injuries are preventable.

Children primarily are at risk of unintentional injury-related death from: motor vehicle injuries which include children as occupants, pedestrians, and bicyclists; fire and burns; drowning; airway obstruction; unintentional firearm injuries; falls; and poisonings. Approximately 50 to 100 unintentional injury-related child deaths occur each year in Maryland.

Safe Kids Maryland, a member of Safe Kids Worldwide, unites more than 650 public, private, and voluntary organizations to reduce preventable childhood injuries in Maryland through community awareness activities, educational programs, and advocacy.