At ordinary times, I often see reports of [children falling from high altitude] in the news. I also come into contact with such cases at work. It is really painful to watch the originally lively and lovely children die prematurely due to accidents, injuries or disabilities. Although the damage caused by falling from high places is great, it can be avoided as long as it is properly prevented and controlled. Parents should know some relevant knowledge to protect our children from falling from high places.
Falling from high places usually causes multiple injuries, with high mortality and disability rates. Generally speaking, injuries may be relatively mild when the height is low, there are buffers, and the ground is soft, such as grass. However, landing on the head, neck, chest and back often leads to serious fatal injuries. However, these are all statistics after the event and have no guiding value for preventing high falling.
What parents need to know is that for babies under one year old, a height of several tens of centimeters can already be fatal, while for older children, 3 meters is a dangerous warning line. What what can parents do to prevent falling from high places?
1. Raise safety awareness
This is a prerequisite, It is also the main purpose of this article. Parents must be very alert to the risk of falling from high places. Don’t take any chances. Please remember: every safety tip is bought with blood or even life. Safety is not a joke. If every individual in the group raises safety awareness, the safety factor of the whole society will be higher and our children will live in a safer environment.
2. Removal of environmental risk factors
Baby: Once there is a tendency to turn over, parents cannot leave him or her alone on the bed or sofa. When you have to do some housework to leave, you should put him or her on the carpet or in the game guardrail.
Older Boy: Once you can walk, Can climb high, Parents should be alert [watch out for windows and balconies], Do not place tables, chairs, sofas, beds and other items that may bring convenience to climbing mountains near windows or balconies. A 10 cm high carton can also increase the danger of children climbing out of windows. The potential safety hazards in kitchens and bathrooms are often ignored, but although they are small in area, there are many items and they should be paid enough attention.
It is suggested that families with children, especially those with floating windows, install necessary safety devices on the windows and balconies, such as security windows, anti-falling nets, etc., and maintain them regularly as a solid [city wall]. In an extreme case, the second-year-old boy fell from the balcony while sleepwalking. If there was a last line of defense, he might have been spared.
There are few cases of falling from stairs, but they should not be taken lightly. If there are stairs in the home, safety measures such as anti-skid and thick carpet should be placed below.
In addition, when taking children out to eat and play, we should also observe whether there are the above potential safety hazards in the place where they are located, and pay special attention to whether there are articles available for climbing at the edge of the window. Because in strange places, children will have greater curiosity to see things outside the window.
3. Give warnings with words that children can understand.
To prevent falling from high places, the main body is children. If they can participate in this process together, they will undoubtedly get twice the result with half the effort.
Baby: Just say [No, No] Sometimes they can’t understand, Parents can try to tell their children [climbing up the window or balcony guardrail is dangerous, parents will worry], [not playing games in the balcony will affect the rest of clothes (flowers and plants) oh], but pay attention to choose the timing, not to carry out education abruptly, arousing their curiosity to give it a try is counterproductive.
Older children: After they have attended the safety education activities in kindergartens and schools, they can discuss the safety topic at home with him. You can also use some colors or patterns to show the safety of various articles, such as places with [red] signs that cannot be visited, places with [green] signs that can be played, and children will be rewarded if they do so.
At the same time, parents should set an example, abide by various safety rules in life, and set an example for their children, so as to create a good family safety atmosphere more efficiently.
4. Guardianship
When we have achieved the above security measures, Under unexpected circumstances, Children may still be in danger of falling high, Therefore, strengthening guardianship is the top priority. Parents should ensure that everyone who takes care of their children has sufficient safety awareness and can responsibly perform the duties of guardianship of their children. It is [to ensure that all the actions of the child are within control and safety], in short, it is within the sight of the guardian. Of course, guardianship is not to supervise, not to tie the child to the body, or to restrict his freedom, but to ensure safety in any case.
Most of the time, The child climbs high to find someone to take care of him. Therefore, even if parents have so much housework to do that they cannot look at the child all the time, they should at least observe the situation of the child every few minutes, and at the same time ensure that you can hear the child as soon as he calls, or the older child can find you in an agreed place, such as the kitchen.
One more point is particularly important, Never leave sleeping children, especially young children, at home alone, even if they go downstairs to buy a bottle of soy sauce or take out garbage, because the children may wake up at the moment you close the door, and the first reaction after that is to find the parents, the door is locked, and the only way out is the most dangerous place!
In summary, Raise safety awareness, remove risk factors, give warnings and strengthen monitoring, It is hoped that every parent will actively implement it. Keep the child away from the fall. At the same time, You will also be a teacher, designer, builder, hotel manager, public place staff, policy maker… I hope you can think of some ways and suggestions in your work from your point of view to jointly create a safe environment so that our children can live healthier, happier and safer lives away from accidental injuries!
Responsible Editor: Fei Fei