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INJURY PREVENTION:
1. Continue to
use a seat belt in the back seat of the car at all times. Continue to use a belt-positioning booster seat. Be sure the vehicle
lap and shoulder belt are positioned across the child in the back seat of the car. Never place your child in the front seat
of a vehicle with a passenger air bag. The back seat is the safest place for children of any age to ride.
2. Establish
and enforce firm, clear, and consistent rules for safe behavior
3. Teach your 5-year-old how to swim. Make sure all
swimming pools in your area are secure.
4. Always use sun screen when your child is outside playing or swimming.
5.
Keep your child's environment free of smoke.
6. Conduct fire drills and make sure all smoke alarms are operating properly.
7. Make sure any guns in the home are locked up and the ammunition is stored separately. A trigger lock is an additional
precaution. And make sure these same safety precautions are followed at friends' homes. Never allow your child to handle firearms.
8. Teach your child emergency phone numbers and safety rules for the home. Lock up poisons, matches, and electrical
tools.
9. Teach bicycle safety and make sure your child always wears an approved helmet as well as shoes while riding
a bicycle.
10. If your home uses gas appliances, install and maintain carbon monoxide detectors.
11. The purchase
of a trampoline is not recommended because of the risk of serious injury.
12. Teach your child safety rules for getting
to and from school. Teach pedestrian and neighborhood safety skills.
13. Teach your child safety rules for biking
and skating. Teach the correct hand signals for traffic safety (e.g., right turn, left turn, stop). Be sure that your child
always wears a helmet when riding a bicycle or skating.
14. Emphasize playground safety with your child.
15.
Be sure that your child is supervised before and after school in a safe environment.
16. Choose caregivers carefully.
Talk with them about their attitudes and behavior in relation to discipline. Do not permit corporal punishment.
17.
Teach your child rules for how to be safe around strangers (e.g., never opening the door to strangers, never getting into
a stranger's car). Be sure that your child's school curriculum includes information on how to be safe when interacting with
strangers.
18. Never let your child play unsupervised outside.
For more information visit:
Town and Country Pediatrics!
Bright Futures.Org: 5 to 10 years!
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