For children under the age of five, most injuries occur at home. Each year at the Children’s Hospital at London Health Sciences Centre (LHSC), nearly 3,000 children come in for the treatment of an injury sustained in the home.
To prevent injuries, strategies must be implemented to account for child development, changing environments, family lifestyles and risk factors of children.
In 2013, LHSC created the Home Safety Program to increase awareness of potential hazards and injury risks to children in the home. This program also provides seven safety devices and an assessment tool all new families.
The devices provided are:
Image: (left to right) Black kit bag with Children's Hospital logo, cabinet side-by-side lock, plug protectors, lever door knob lock, grip-n-twist door knob cover, multipurpose latch and toilet lock
Nurses on the Postpartum Care Unit and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) provide the education and kit to first time families. Home safety kits are also distributed in the community by Middlesex London Health Unit and by request from other partner organizations.
The Home Safety Program relies on the generous funding provided by the Children’s Health Foundation.
