Summer is Around the Corner – Keep Your Children Safe!

Summer is swiftly approaching, with only a few short weeks left in this school year. Soon enough, your children will be spending a lot of time outdoors having fun in the South Florida sun. While summer is a great time to do catch up on some much-needed fun time, it is also important that your children remain safe while enjoying outdoor activities. Continue reading to learn more about ensuring your little one’s stay safe this summer.

Playgrounds

Playgrounds are a great place to take your children to when you want to get out of the house but aren’t sure what to do. The next time you and your children visit a playground, think about these safety tips:

• Never leave a child unsupervised when using play equipment. Not only for their safety while climbing, walking, and jumping over equipment, but also to ensure that they are safe from strangers.
• Metal swings and rubber can become very hot, be sure to check anything your child will touch is not too hot to prevent your child’s delicate skin from being burned.
• Take a walk around the playground and make sure there are no loose materials, protruding bolts, or anything that could potentially cause harm to your child or any other child.
• Remove any helmets or objects looped around your child’s neck, such as necklaces as these can be strangulation hazards.

Bicycles

Riding bikes with your children is a fantastic way to bond while creating healthy habits but many dangers can come along with riding bikes, which is why we have provided these safety tips for bike riding:

• ALWAYS WEAR A HELMET! According to a Stanford Medicine survey, Each year about 100 children are killed and 254,000 are injured as a result of bicycle-related accidents. Injuries can happen anywhere, even if you are not far from home. Children are great observers, so we encourage parents to also wear helmets in an effort to be good role models for their children.
• Be sure to purchase a helmet for your child that is labeled with the ‘CPSC safety standard’.
• Take your child bike shopping with you so that they can test out the bikes and choose one perfectly suited for them.
• Your child should never ride their bike facing traffic and should also ride to the right of you.
• Teach your child proper bike riding etiquette, such as; obeying traffic control devices and stop signs.

Gardening

Involving your children in gardening duties can benefit both you and your little ones this summer. When working around the garden, think about these tips:

• Make sure your child is using age-appropriate gardening tools and that they are being supervised while using such tools.
• When using a lawn mower, be sure that your child is wearing eye protection to avoid flying objects from harming their eyes. Children under sixteen years old should not be operating a lawn mower, and no child should ever ride as a passenger. Ensure that when your lawn mower is turned off, the blades stop completely before unclogging any grass or debris.
• Your child should use sunscreen and hats or other forms of sun protection to avoid getting burned by the harsh Florida sun rays.

Vehicles

While being on top of your children near vehicles should be a safety reminder year-round, this is especially the case during the summer when they are outside more often.

• Be mindful that your child or other children may be playing outside when you are pulling your vehicle out of your driveway. Walk around your car before turning it on and back out slowly every time.
• Children should not drive ATV’s unless they are of age and have gone through safety training courses.
  • If your child is of age to drive or ride an ATV or motorized vehicle, they should wear helmets and safety visors to reduce the severity of an injury if they are involved in an accident.
• Always check your child to make sure they are always wearing their seatbelt.

On behalf of SuraMed Health Center, we sure hope you and your family have a wonderful summer this year! Be mindful of these summer safety tips and remember to have lots of fun. Our pediatric clinics across Palm Beach County and Port Saint Lucie are here to serve you all summer long, schedule an appointment by visiting our website at suramedhealthcenter.com.