Prevent Accidents- Childproof your Home!
The following article can be found in Understanding Your Child’s Health by Susan K Schulman MD., which will be available in July, 2009 (Hamodia Treasures, distributed by Israel Book Shop).
In my 30 years experience I have dealt with a number of life threatening incidents from preventable accidents in the home. The following is a brief list.
- A seven year old fell head first out of a second story window onto the concrete driveway below when the screen he was leaning on fell out of the window.
- A 15 month old child fell head first out of his highchair onto a ceramic tile floor and required emergency neurosurgery.
- A 9 month old sustained 3rd degree burns of the hands from an oven door. A 4 week old baby sustained severe burns of the buttocks when placed in a sink for a bath. (After the mother checked the water temperature, the hot water tap had quietly leaked into the sink while the mother was undressing the baby.)
- An 8 month old sustained severe chemical burns when he sat in a puddle of St. Moritz oven cleaner that his toddler sister had spilled on the floor.
- A 2 year old child required CPR when her heart stopped from an accidental overdose of her grandmother’s heart medicine which she found in a pocketbook.
- A 13 month old baby was found with his head submerged in the toilet which he fell into while trying to retrieve a toy.
- A 9 month old baby was found not breathing under a plastic covered pile of newly delivered dry cleaned clothing that had been left on a bed.
- A 22 month old and the 8 month old sibling ate 90 vitamin tablets that the older one knocked off the bathroom shelf while standing in the sink.
- A two year old girl turned blue while eating hot dog “wheels”. ( Her 10 year old sister performed a Heimlich Maneuver on her and it popped out of her mouth.)
- A three year old boy sustained third degree abrasions on his hand when he wedged it accidentally under a running treadmill.
Miraculously, with Hashem’s chesed, all of these children survived their injuries, some of them with scars, many requiring prolonged hospitalizations.
It is well known that more children die as a result of accidental injury than from all illnesses combined. Thirty years ago The American Academy of Pediatrics and the National Safety Council proposed the concept of Childproofing to teach parents how to avoid injury around the house.. Most people know that they must try to make the environment in their home safe for their children. Electrical outlet covers and kinderlocks on cabinets have become standard in most households. There are, however, many more basic aspects of home safety that must be considered to effectively child proof a home. Here is a simple checklist.
Key points
- Childproofing requires careful attention and common sense.
- Even the baby sitter’s house and grandparents house need to be childproofed.
- Be aware! Quiet toddlers are unpredictable and very talented at finding trouble.
- Pesach cleaning often brings stronger chemicals into the house environment.
Prevent Choking
The airway of a small child can be blocked completely by any small rounded object like a grape or round pieces of hot dogs. This category includes jellybeans, whole baby carrots,and hard candies. All round foods must be cut in lengthwise pieces before giving them to a toddler. These foods should not be given whole or in round pieces until the child is at least three years old. All coins, buttons ,balloons, wheels of toy cars and marbles can also block the airway. When any toy is labeled as a choking hazard it is to be avoided until age three.
Nuts, corn and raw carrots also often cause choking and the small pieces get into the airway. These do not usually cause total blockage of breathing but they can get stuck in the bronchial tubes and often require endoscopic or surgical removal.
Preventing poisoning
“Never underestimate the ability of a quiet toddler to climb high, and to find trouble!” All medications, including vitamins and supplements should be kept in a locked box or cabinet no matter high the cabinet is. Cleaning solutions, laundry products and cleaning sprays should never be kept under a sink. They also must be put in an inaccessible place.
When there are elderly adults in the house they must also take care to hide their medications and not leave them on their dressers or in pocketbooks. Some house plants are poisonous. Check yours to be sure they are safe if they are accidentally eaten.
Preventing falls
To have a safe home you need proper equipment and a lot of common sense. Windows must have window guards. Window screens do not provide any protection at all. Stairways should be blocked by safety gates. Safety straps and even 5 point harnesses must be used when the child is in a high chair, especially if he or she is an escape artist. Bunk beds and toddler beds must have rails.
Never leave a baby on an elevated surface like a counter top or a bed without keeping one hand on him to prevent a fall. If you cannot do this put the baby on the floor. (you cannot fall out of bed when you are sleeping on the floor!)
Coffee tables are low enough to cause serious injury when a child falls and strikes the edge with his head. Remove them when the babies are standing and walking and when kids are running around. Curious toddlers can climb on top of sforim shranks and even refrigerators. It is essential to always know exactly where your toddler is and what he is doing.
Preventing burns
Shabbos and Yom Tov can present frequent opportunities for fires and burns to happen. Shabbos candles, hot water urns, stove top covers(blechs) are all potential hazards. Extreme care must be taken to insure that toddlers and young children are monitored during Shabbos and Yom Tov.
Radiators and oven doors must have covers. A baby will use the hot radiator or oven door to support his weight as he tries to stand up and this can result in severe hand burns.
The hot water heater in the house must be set at 120 -125 degrees. If your tap water is hot enough to dissolve instant coffee it is too hot.
Pot handles should be turned to the wall when you are cooking. Never hold a child while you cook or when you have a hot drink in your hand.
Serving soup from a tureen at the table can prevent accidental burn while transporting the steaming soup bowls from the kitchen.
Electrical outlets must have snugly fitted covers.
Matches and lighters must be out of reach.
Preventing cuts and lacerations
Knives, scissors, food processor blades, sewing needles and other sharps must be made inaccessible. Discard empty cans in a safe container. Glass items should not be left in easy reach.
Preventing asphyxiation
All of the following can lead to serious injury or even death.: Hinged toy boxes, tight spots (such as between beds or between the bed and the wall) ropes and blind cords, plastic drycleaner bags, plastic bags, strings around the neck(including necklaces on babies.)
Preventing drowning
A child should never be left alone in or near water even for a second. Besides bathtubs and swimming pools, even mop buckets and toilets can be dangerous. Babies and toddles are “top heavy” and they can fall in head first if they reach for something in the water. Tubs and kiddy pools should be emptied after each use.
Dealing with accidental injuries
All caregivers, parents and grandparents should learn basic first aid for cuts(pressure) and burns(cool water) and how to do a Heimlich Maneuver and Rescue Breathing.. The few minutes time until Hatzolah arrives can be critical to the outcome in a life threatening situation.
It is important to remember that other homes the children visit, like the babysitter’s house, the grandparents’ house and summer homes must be childproofed too. Childproofing is part of our sacred job. We must all do our share to ensure the basic safety of our kids.
Pesach cleaning safety
Pesach cleaning is an overwhelming job in most households. Unfortunately the cleaning solutions we use can cause serious harm to toddlers and children who get into them accidentally. Here is a letter to the Binah Magazine about one mother’s experience.
Dear Dr. Schulman,
Last year I spent a whole month starting one week before Pesach in the burn unit of the Staten Island Hospital with my nine-month-old baby. Please tell everyone to be careful with the cleaning products before Pesach. My son had third-degree burns from sitting in a puddle of St. Moritz oven cleaner.Learned My Lesson the Hard Way
This is my reply:
Dear Learned,
Unfortunately, the pediatric burn units in the New York area have a much higher percentage of Orthodox Jewish children admitted than any other ethnic group. This is because of the Shabbos candles, havdalah licht, Chanukah menoros, cholent pots, hot water urns, and blechs that are found in every home. Each one of these is a burn hazard, especially when there are active, curious, unpredictable toddlers in the house. When it comes to Pesach cleaning, there is another very serious hazard that is not often recognized: oven cleaners that are not packaged according to American standards.
In the United States the government has standards of packaging that require hazardous substances such as medication and strong, lye-based cleaning solutions, drain cleaners, and pest poisons to be packaged in childproof containers when sold for home use. Some products, such as Easy Off oven cleaner, are required to be less powerful than the commercial strength products. This material, even in a low strength solution, can cause severe burns and blindness if not washed off thoroughly and immediately after contact.The local small groceries servicing the Orthodox Jewish community often import cleaning products from Europe or Israel. These products would not be sold in supermarkets because they are stronger than the legal limits and do not have safety packaging. One very popular example is St. Moritz oven cleaner. Cleaning the oven for Pesach is a really hard task, and many women have found that St. Moritz works better than the American products. The problem is that it is extremely strong, and it is packaged in a regular spray bottle that now contains a warning label and safety cap.Unfortunately, a persistent child may still be able to open it.
I had one three-year-old child who sprayed it into the face of her baby sister who was playing in the kitchen. The baby was screaming, and the mother could not figure out what was wrong. It took her several minutes to notice that the baby’s eyelid was getting red and swollen. She finally noticed that the toddler was playing with a spray bottle in the bathroom. When she realized it was the St. Moritz, she called Hatzolah. They came and transported the baby to the hospital while irrigating the eye continuously. The baby was hospitalized for two weeks. Miraculously, the eye healed, baruch Hashem, with no scarring on the cornea.Another child spilled St. Moritz on the floor and stepped in it with only socks on his feet. That incident also went undiagnosed until the mother undressed him several hours later, and there was real skin damage on the bottom of his foot. He also spent several weeks in the hospital.
Last year I had a baby brought in with St. Moritz burns on the back of his thighs and legs. The mother had cleaned his high chair with St. Moritz for Pesach and had not rinsed it off thoroughly. When she placed him barelegged in the freshly cleaned high chair, his legs were burned. Not realizing why he was crying, she did not start irrigation until twenty minutes later. The baby was severely injured.
There are several safety points that should be remembered:
1. Read instructions on all products carefully, and follow them.
2. Keep all cleaning solutions and chemicals high and inaccessible to children whenever they are not in use. Do not put the container down when you are done – put it away immediately. Do not rely on KinderGard locks on the cabinet under the sink.
3. Safety packaging is for your child’s safety. Buying products that are not properly packaged is not wise in a household with children.
4. If any skin or eye contact occurs, rinse the area under cool water immediately and for at least ten minutes. Do not wait for Hatzolah to start irrigation. Delaying even a few minutes can make a big difference in the severity of the injury.
5. When you are using strong cleaning solutions, wear latex gloves and goggles or glasses. Using common sense and a real awareness of the burn hazards will make your home as safe as it is clean for Pesach.