Summer safety

With the temperatures shooting up, everyone is looking for ways to keep cool. But don’t forget to keep yourself and your family safe. The kids are out of school and looking for things to do. Make sure they stay safe all summer long.

Poison

Poison is a concern all year long. Meri-K Appy, president of the Home Safety Council, recommends that all parents pay particular attention to protecting kids against poisoning, and points to what she calls the “a-ha fact”: Out of 2.4 million poisoning exposures, according to the National Poison Control Center, more than half were children under age 6. This means children have easy access to things that can make them sick.

Conduct a special search of your home for poisons. Appy recommends reading all product labels and looking for “signal words.” They will be printed in all caps — words such as CAUTION, WARNING, DANGER and KEEP OUT OF REACH OF CHILDREN. Read the warnings carefully and place these products where children can’t reach them. Consider getting safety locks for your cupboards and cabinets that contain these products. Put the number of the National Poison Control Center in your cell phone: 800-222-1222.

Some products are deceptively dangerous, Appy says, such as cleaning products that have pictures of fruit on them to indicate a citrus scent. They may even look like beverage bottles.

Pools

Kids love pools. When they learn how much fun a pool is, it can be hard to keep them out of them. The Home Safety Council recommends that every pool be surrounded by a fence at least 5 feet high, of sturdy mesh rather than chain-link because chain link is easier to climb. It should have a self-closing, self-latching gate. There should be no way for a child to get at the pool without “touch supervision.”

If you are supervising children in a pool, pay attention. It’s better to have several adults supervising a group of children. Listen for sudden silences, for the splashing to stop. Take turns with other adults.

If your child is invited to go to a pool without you, don’t be afraid to ask awkward questions. How many adults will be there? How many kids will be there? There should be one adult for every four kids. Ask if anyone knows CPR and if there is rescue equipment on hand. Ask what the plan is for supervising. Will the adults be taking turns watching the children? Have they discussed this? Offer to come and help supervise.

“You can never have too many conscious, sober adults watching the pool,” Appy said. “A child can drown in an inch or two of water.”

Never leave a child near water unsupervised. And don’t leave a child to be supervised by a child who is slightly older. Supervisors must be adults, and must know how to swim, and should know CPR.

Drowning isn’t the only hazard presented by pools.Serious injuries can result from slips on wet surfaces. Falls are the No. 1 cause of accidental death.

Southern Nevada leads the nation in the number of residential swimming pools and this is considered the primary reason drowning is the leading cause of death to kids 4 years and younger. “While most drownings are in swimming pools, children can succumb in bathtubs, pails of water, spas, ponds, and even doggy-bowls,” says Appy. “Preventing drowning comes down to the core principle of NEVER leaving a child unattended. Not for a second, not for a minute. Ever.”

Pool Safety Tips

• Secure the backyard swimming pool with perimeter fencing, preferably wrought iron and at least 5 feet tall. A self-latching, self-closing gate is recommended with safety mesh so that inquisitive youngsters can’t open it themselves to get into
• the pool area;
• Remove doggy doors leading to the backyard or drowning potential areas;
• Cover the spa with a lockable cover when not in use;
• Remove enticements from the swimming pool when it’s
• not in use, including patio furniture, which might be used to climb over the fence;
• Install a motion detector alarm on the doors, windows, and sliders leading to the pool areas, as well as the pool itself.
• Have all family members trained in CPR, as well as making sure safety equipment is in place (i.e., buoys, poles) including a cordless phone should an incident occur.

Remember, preventing drowning really is as simple as having constant, adult supervision, and being aware that it is not a seasonal issue, but a year-round threat.

Your home

“Our home should be the safest place we can be,” Appy said. Unfortunately, it isn’t, if accident data are any indication. The important thing, Appy said, is not to be daunted. Don’t try to give your home a safety makeover in one afternoon. Make a list and try to change a few things over time. You can conduct a virtual tour of your home at www.mysafehome.org.

Make sure your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are working. Another important tip, Appy said, is to always use provided safety straps. Whether on a changing table, a high chair or child carrier, always use the safety straps. They are provided with good reason — often to help reduce the risk of serious head injuries from falling or being dropped.

“It’s important to stay a step ahead of a growing, developing child,” Appy said. Be vigilant about toys with small parts. Get a small-parts tester. If a part can fit through it, it’s a potential choking hazard.

Get down to a child’s eye level and see what the world looks like from down there. Get an idea of what is within reach. Move furniture away from windows and make sure windows don’t open more than an inch or two. This can be an issue during the summer. If the windows must be open, then there is no substitute for extra vigilance. A child can work a window open and fall through in less time than you might think.

Backyard play area

The backyard swing set is a favorite for kids. Many parents just place a swing set right on the grass, but this is still too hard a surface. Serious head trauma can result from falls from swings onto the grass. Before setting up a swing set, install soft surfacing 9 to 12 inches deep. Rubber mulch, wood chips or pea gravel are all acceptable. Sand gets packed down and becomes too hard. The soft surfacing should extend 6 feet in all directions from the swing set to provide soft landings. And of course, children should be supervised when using the swing set.