BEFORE HITTING THE ROAD OVER MEMORIAL DAY,
DRISCOLL CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL REMINDS FAMILIES TO BUCKLE UP!

Buckle Up America Week May 24-31, 2004

(Corpus Christi, TX) During the Memorial Day weekend, thousands of Texans will hit the roads. But before the festive three-day holiday begins, Driscoll Children’s Hospital reminds parents of passenger safety so that children of all ages, traveling both long and short distances, are safe in the car.

Car crashes are the leading cause of death and injury among children under eight in the United States. No parent would intentionally compromise the safety of his or her child. Unfortunately, when it comes to child passenger safety, an innocent error can lead to tragedy. Nationally, 80% of car seats used are used improperly, and in South Texas the misuse rate jumps to over 95%. Although some of these mistakes only cause minimal injury, some errors can cause permanent damage and even death.

“With proper precautionary measures, such as the proper use and installation of age-appropriate child safety seats, most unintentional injuries and injury-related deaths can be prevented,” says Michelle Thomas, Injury Prevention Coordinator at Driscoll Children's Hospital. “Children get hurt when parents or caregivers do not properly restrain them when riding in a vehicle, or are unaware of the dangers associated with certain motor vehicle situations.”

Children ages 4-8 years are probably the most underserved age group because parents think that they no longer need car seats. This is a dangerous situation for the child says Thomas. “This problem tends to be swept under the rug because this age group is too big for conventional car seats and too small for seat belts. Most parents know that smaller children must be in car seats, but many don’t realize that most children need the protection of a booster seat until they are eight-years-old.” Today, there are child restraint systems available to fit the needs of every child and family.

Driscoll Children's Hospital offers child passenger safety tips including:

• Carefully read the vehicle owner's manual and child safety seat instructions to ensure proper installation and use of the seat.
• Make sure the seat has not been recalled.
• Place child in the safety seat before purchase to ensure a proper fit.
• Have child safety seat checked by a certified child passenger safety technician. Driscoll Children's Hospital’s Injury Prevention Program has certified technicians who can inspect your car seat by appointment. Call the Injury Prevention Program at 361-694-6700 or toll-free 866-886-5957. You may also access additional information by visiting the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website at www.nhtsa.dot.gov.
• Use only child safety seats with the 5-point harness. The five-point harness has two straps at the shoulders, two at the hips, and one at the crotch.
• Never place a rear-facing child in front of an airbag. The safest place for small children is the rear seat.
• If your child must ride in the front seat, move the seat as far back as possible, away from the airbag. If the car has no back seat, infants will only be safe in their rear-facing child safety seats if the vehicle has no airbag, or if the airbag has been switched off.
• Children should not be allowed to ride or play in cargo areas of any vehicles.
• To prevent trunk entrapment, children should not play in and around vehicles. Lock cars and keep the keys away from children.
• Never leave a child unattended in a vehicle.

DRISCOLL CHIDLREN’S HOSPITAL
TIPS FOR SELECTING THE APPROPRIATE CAR SAFETY SEAT

When choosing a car seat, parents should use size and age as guidelines.

By Weight:

• 5 – 20 lbs. and under one year old . . . . . . . . Infant seat or rear-facing convertible.

• Over 20 lbs. and still under one year old . . . Rear-facing convertible that has
been tested to higher weight limits (30 – 35 lbs.).

• Over one year AND between 20-40 lbs. . . . . Forward-facing convertible or combination
booster seat used with the harness system.

• Over 40 lbs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Belt-positioning booster seat (either a high-back
booster or a backless booster). Must be used in a seating position where a shoulder belt is available in the car.

By Type of Car Seat

• Infant Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 – 20 lbs.
• Convertible Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 – 30 lbs. or 35 lbs. rear-facing.
20 – 40 lbs. forward-facing (use forward facing only if child is over one year old.)
• Combination Booster Seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 – 40 lbs. with harness
30 – 60 lbs. or 80 lb. without harness (used as belt-positioning booster). Must have a shoulder belt available.
• Shield Booster . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30 – 40 lbs. with shield (This situation is not recommended by safety advocates if the child is less than 40 lbs. They should still be using a harness system. A shield does not provide adequate upper body protection in a crash.)

40 – 60 lbs. without shield (This is safe as long as the child is in a seating position with a shoulder belt is available)

About Driscoll Children’s Hospital
“Improve the health of adults and you give them back their health …
Improve the health of children and you give them their life.”

Since opening its doors in 1953, Driscoll Children’s Hospital has been offering hope and healing to the children of South Texas for half a century. The facility is a 200-bed pediatric tertiary care center with pediatric board-certified specialists representing 19 medical and nine surgical specialties. Each year, more than 6,000 children are admitted for inpatient care, 5,000 for day surgery, and 50,000 for outpatient primary and specialty care, as well as 40,000 for emergency care, as the first South Texas hospital with emergency services exclusively for children. Additionally, Driscoll maintains a state-of-the-art ground/air transport team, 20-bed pediatric intensive care unit, 40-bed neonatal intensive care unit, and specialized medical outreach.

www.driscollchildrens.org

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