Florida Child Injury Law Blog

Posts Tagged ‘child injury’

Recently, a 7-year-old boy from California received national attention and praise for his quick thinking in calling 911 during an armed robbery at his home.   

News reports state three men burst into the home with weapons and held his mother and father at gunpoint.  The boy, only identified as Carlos, hid with his sister in a locked bathroom.  There he placed the call.  “There are some guys that are gonna kill my Mom and Dad. Can you come, please,” Carlos said to sheriff’s dispatcher Monique Patino.

The suspects left without hurting anyone, upon discovering the 911 call had been made.  When interviewed, Carlos said his mother taught him how to dial 911.  “We practice it every day,” he said.

Teaching your children what constitutes an emergency is important.  Quizzing them on what they would do in the event of a fire, a serious medical problem (seizure, bleeding, serious wounds) or any life-threatening situation is vital training that will prepare them if the occasion ever arises.  A child is generally capable of doing so when they are able to communicate verbally,  about 3-4 years old.  It’s imperative  your child memorizes your street address and phone number so operators have that information as confirmation. 

The Dodson Law Firm is dedicated to the safety of your children and provides this blog as a service in doing so.  Additional information on how to use 911 can be found at kidshealth.org.

Florida Child Injury Lawyer, working to make safety every child’s reality.

 Is Florida is need of a more stringent car booster seat requirement law?  AAA , the automobile people, think so. 

 Florida is joined by only 2 states, Arizona and South Dakota as not requiring booster seats for children under the age of 7 years old.   It’s been reported that the National Transportation Safety Board has criticized all three states for its lax legislation regarding the matter. Florida lawmakers have resisted however.

 Our current state law requires child restraint devices through age 5.  Exceptions are made to children 4 and 5 who can wear a seat belt instead of a specialized restraint. 

 A child who is properly restrained in a booster seat is less likely to be injured in a car accident. Children who are not properly restrained are at risk of being thrown from the car or inside the car and may seriously injure themselves or other passengers in the car.  Booster seats allow children to sit higher, so car seat belts fit them better and  protect them from head and abdominal injuries. 

 A bill sponsored by Rep. Rich Glorioso (R-Plant City) and Rep. Richard Steinberg (D-Miami Beach) would require booster seats for children ages 4 to 7. Sen. Thad Altman (R-Melbourne) is offering his support to this responsible measure in the Senate.

 The Dodson Law Firm offers its support for responsible legislation leading to increased safety for the children of Florida. 

For information concerning car seat safety inspection stations visit our Florida Child Injury Lawyer website, working to make safety a reality for every child.

Research in the past  has shown child bathtime injuries have been related primarily to burns, scalding and even drowning. When a parent tells their child, “It’s time to take a bath,” they might expect some resistance but they don’t expect a serious accident to occur.

 But an estimated 43,600 bathtub and shower-related injuries do happen every year to children resulting in a trip to the emergency room.  According to a study conducted by Dr. Gary Smith of Ohio State University, 81% of those accidents are brought about by a child slipping, falling or tripping.   

More than half of the injuries occur in the under 5 years of age group. Child injuries usually are lacerations and soft tissue injuries.

 Dr. Smith is quick to point out the problem shouldn’t be blamed solely on lack of parental supervision.  “They happen so quickly that a parent simply can’t react quickly enough to prevent them,” he said. “Therefore, it is important to prevent them from happening by using a slip resistant mat inside and outside the bath and shower.”  

 To read more information about the results of the study, please visit medpagetoday.com.

For additional information concerning child safety and injury protection, please visit our Florida Child Injury lawyer document and resource library on our website.

Elizabeth Quinn is an exercise physiologist and fitness consultant who works with organizations designing functional training programs.  Here are some important tips she supplies for parent’s whose children are involved with youth sports.

 Although some may appear to be common sense, sometimes  it’s the “smaller things” that are overlooked that could lead to child injury. Many children experience  minor bruises and injuries as they participate in youth sports. But there are some safety considerations for parents in the event an injury does occur and steps to take  to protect children from more serious injuries.

• Does the coach have first aid training and an emergency action plan?
• Is there a safety policy regarding injury, illness, and inclement weather?
• Does the coach have your emergency contact information?
• Do you have contact information for the coach?
• Is there a first-aid kit always on hand?
• Is there available water, hydration at all game & practices?
• Is there a scheduled warm-up and cool down at games and practices?
• Does your child receive guidelines and recommendations about proper safety equipment?                                                                                                                
• Is safety equipment required for play?
• Are children allowed adequate rest between games and practices?
• Is sportsmanship, and fair play a core value of the program and the coach?

 Unfortunately, tragic accidents can  happen on the playing field.   Children have the potential for suffering many kinds of  serious injuries while playing sports including: broken bones, concussion, trauma, torn ligaments, sprains and strains, eye injuries and more. If you are unsure  about answers to even one of these questions, make a point to find out. It’s in your children best interest and safety that you do.  The Dodson Law Firm protects the interests of families every day.  For a free consultation with our Florida Personal Injury lawyers contact our office @ 1-888-340-0840.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has a great deal of information for parents concerned about Bisphenol A, also known as BPA.

 Here are some safety tips  the HHS lists for families to limit a newborn’s exposure to BPA.     

 *Follow Recommended Guidelines to Feed Your Infant – HHS supports the American Academy of Pediatrics’ recommendations for infant feeding and supports breastfeeding for at least 12 months whenever possible, as breast milk is the optimal source of nutrition for infants.  

 *Discard Scratched Baby Bottles and Infant Feeding Cups -Worn baby bottles and cups are likely to have scratches that harbor germs and – if they contain BPA – may release small amounts of the chemical.

 *Temperature Matters – Be careful how you heat up your child’s breast milk or formula.  Studies have found there is a very small amount of BPA in plastics and other packaging materials that can transfer to food and liquids. 

 *Check the Labels On Your Bottles and Food Preparation Containers - As a good household practice, only use containers marked “dishwasher safe” in the dishwasher and only use “microwave safe” marked containers in the microwave.

BPA is one of the world’s highest production-volume chemicals and is used in making baby bottles, pacifers, sippy cups and baby toys.  Many states have passed laws banning the use of the chemical BPA in products intended for children under the age of three. Playtex and Gerber have announced they will stop using BPA in the production of their baby bottles. For more consumer information on child injury protection and child safety, visit our Florida Child Injury Lawyer section of our law firm website.

With the big game coming up, safety officials are warning families to be safe and keep kids away from a potential TV that could cause injury if overturned. This also includes TV stands that could be a hazard as well, if pulled or climbed upon.

Frank Becerra Jr./The Journal News

As reported by the New York’s Lower Hudson website, “Injury rates have been increasing year after year. It’s a serious problem,” said Don Mays, senior director of product safety and technical policy for Consumers Union, the nonprofit publisher of Consumer Reports. “The good news is that it’s very preventable.”

Just a reminder to keep children safe while watching the Super Bowl game this weekend and also throughout the year!

The Dodson Law Firm is committed to providing safety resources  to prevent child injury.  We want to help parents ensure a happy, healthy and safe life for their children.

 Pet access doors are an area of concern of which every parent should be aware.  Millions of these doors have been installed for convenience of allowing a cat or dog to access the outdoors. More than 70 cases have been uncovered in which a child died or nearly lost their lives after leaving their home through a pet door.  Most fatalities and accidents result from a child drowning in a pool or another hazardous place.  In all reality, that number could be much higher since often times it is not recorded how a child accessed the outdoors.

 Naturally parents and guardians of young children and toddlers always have to be on guard and never leave a child unsupervised and unattended.   According to PetAccessDangers.org, warnings by most pet door manufacturers are either insufficient or totally lacking.   

Manufacturers of products have a solemn responsibility to warn and alert consumers of the potential dangers associated with their product.

In the event of an injury to your son or daughter, you experience doubts and a sense of anxiety about  your child.  In a great article from WHYY news it states: “In the aftermath of a child’s injury, parents often struggle with pain of their own.”

The article explains a new study from The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and examines how parents cope psychologically after a child is injured.

According to the study, “Doctors at the Center for Injury Research and Prevention at the Children’s Hospital found that one month after a child’s injury, 37 percent of parents experienced symptoms of traumatic stress including high levels of anxiety.”

In the event of an injury to your child, you may experience these same kinds of symptoms.  We have found an excellent website to help parents deal with the trauma after an accident or injury. AfterTheInjury is a great website with alot of resources.

When it comes to children, HealthyStuff.org is an organization who cares.  They provide a wealth of information pertaining to items such as back-to-school products, children’s toys, cars and children’s car seats. The list keeps growing.

We are providing you with a link to HealthyStuff’s  recently posted 2009 best/worst list of car seats.  The list is broken down into 3 categories:  infant, convertible and booster.  The results should be interesting to concerned parents.

If you have any questions regarding your child’s car seat, also note that the Florida Highway Patrol  provides a service by a staff member who will check the seat, show you how to properly and safely install it and answer any of your questions about child restraints. 

We provide more information concerning issues related to child safety on our Florida Child Injury website.

We all know how much children love to play.  It’s part of how they lead active and happy lives.  Falls among children are common, and at certain stages of their development happen almost every day.  However they can be serious…in fact falls are the leading cause of accidental injury for children. 

 Statistics from SafeKids.org  state children, 4 years of age and under, have the greatest risk for falls.  This age group accounts for 56 percent of childhood fall-related deaths and more than 40 percent of child injuries.

 Parents must be vigilant and keep a keen eye out in their home.  In fact, 80 percent of fall-related injuries among children ages 4 and under, occur right in their own house. 

 Knowledge is key to safety and injury prevention!  For tips on what you should know to prevent fall injuries and the steps to take, if your child does suffer a fall at home, please follow this link to an article posted in our Florida child injury website document library for more information.