I hate to start with the bad news, but ...
- over 200,000 children are seen in the emergency room each year due to playground injuries
- around 65% of these injuries involve falls or equipment failures
- around 80% happen from home equipment
The good news ... many of these injuries can be prevent with proper supervision.
Things to keep in mind while at a playground:
- Children cannot necessarily foresee dangerous situations by themselves
- Supervision can sometimes keep older children in check from testing the limits of the playground and playing dangerously
- Make sure you can see your child clearly at all times
When you are going to take your little ones to the playground check it out for safety.
- Make sure the playground surface is soft and thick to cushion a child's fall - wood chips, mulch, sand, pea gravel, shredded rubber or safety mats.
- The play area should be free of standing water, rocks, tree stumps and roots.
- The safest playgrounds have separate areas for different age levels, toddlers to 2, 2 to 5 years old, 5 to 12 years old.
- Swings should be away from the play area.
- Take a look for any broken equipment, cracks, splinters or rust.
- If something looks unsafe or broken make that area off-limits.
Some websites for even more information
Having a child who loves to play outside I know the difficulties of keeping preschoolers off the older child play areas.
This comment was sent to me on Facebook and it should be shared.
ReplyDeleteMeredith at 15 months burned her hands on our front door which included a trip to Shriners. One of the nurses was telling me all the burns they see. The one that shocked me the most are they see quite a few burns from playground equipment especially burns to the buttocks and legs from the slides being too hot. She said this even included plastic ones. I never would have guessed this. So after she got burned I always checked them by putting my hand on the equipment and they were super hot.
I am not trying to sound like a know it all but the 2nd and 3rd degree burns Meredith had and the screams she had I haven't forgotten.