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5 Common Childhood Injuries and How to Prevent Them


Suffice to say, childhood injury is no laughing matter to a family’s finances and wellbeing. In the worst cases, young children may also be left with chronic pain or severe hindrances to their physical abilities, and they may carry significant psychological trauma from the incident.

Luckily, much can be done to lessen the various burdens of childhood injury. If you are an adult with a parental or supervisory role to children, you can take precautionary steps to make sure nothing grave happens on your watch. You can keep a well-stocked first aid kit and a directory of emergency numbers on hand, and you can also take a first aid course in Sydney or in your locality to refine your knowledge of life-saving techniques like CPR. But these actions should work in tandem with a preventive approach to childhood injury—i.e., gaining control of the situation or environment in order to slim down the chances of such injuries occurring.

To help you cover the bases, here is a list of 6 common childhood injuries among Australian children, what circumstances they occur in, and some key points of action on how to prevent them.


Falls

Why They Happen:
Falls from playground equipment are cited by the statistics as the most common injury mechanism among Australian children hospitalised for injury. But bad falls can also occur wherever children are situated at a high height, such as from a chair. Nasty falls can cause sprains, fractures, or even concussions.

How to Prevent Them:
Always see to it that your young wards are properly supervised in places where they are engaging in physical activity, like during leisurely play on the playground or during a sporting event on the field. Pay special attention when a child is about to climb, jump, or sprint. If you know there’s a likelihood that they’ll fall or bump into something at a bad angle, take the opportunity to intervene.


Road Accident Injuries

Why They Happen:
Road accidents are another common cause of childhood injury in Australian children. These incidents can involve colliding with motor vehicles in traffic, hitting other persons or light vehicles (such as scooters) in the pedestrian lane, or being hit by a family-owned vehicle in a driveway. A child’s injuries depend on the impact of the collision and can range in severity from minor to life-threatening.

How to Prevent Them:
The principles of road safety must be strictly upheld with children. If children are to be let outdoors, they should be kept within safe bounds by a fence. By no means should they go unsupervised to a garage or driveway area, and they should always be assisted whilst stepping into a vehicle or crossing the street. The safest preventive approach toward road accidents is to shield and supervise very young children and to teach them about road safety rules when they are old enough to understand.


Cuts and Piercings

Why They Happen:
Objects that can be deemed perfectly safe to use by adults can be of significant danger to young children, who may not have the fine motor skills to use them properly. Knives, needles, sharp-tipped pens and pencils, and glass furnishings pose a particular threat. If children come into contact with these, they risk cutting, poking, or piercing themselves.

How to Prevent Them:
When it comes to sharp things, follow the principle: “Keep out of reach of children.” Make sure these implements are out of arm’s reach, locked up in drawers, or tucked away in high cabinets. In addition, you might want to move glass furnishings like vases and figurines to rooms that are far away from the child’s play area so as to cut the risk of breakage and injuries.


Incidences of Poisoning

Why They Happen:
Household poisons are another contender for common childhood injury. Children may mistakenly ingest non-consumable substances such as bleach or detergent, or medications like paracetamol or antihistamines. When this happens, they might exhibit symptoms such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, and abdominal pain. If your child incurs poisoning from these substances, the best immediate response is to call the Triple Zero emergency line (000).

How to Prevent Them:
To prevent your child from coming across household substances and accidentally ingesting them, you should do two things: lock up and label. Be conscientious about replacing bottles of cleaner in their designated cabinets or drawers and keeping all medicated prescriptions hidden away in your personal quarters. You should also put clear labels on each bottle or canister of non-consumable product—write the brand name, type of product, and what it’s used for on the label. This will also keep your belongings organised and prevent everyone in the household, not only the children, from confusing them with consumable substances.


Burns and Scalds

Why They Happen:
Burns and scalds incurred by children are more often than not caused by their exposure to hot surfaces or hot liquids. For the former, these can include stove tops or heated kitchen appliances. For the latter, these include hot drinks from a thermos or mug, hot soup from a bowl, or hot bathwater from the tap. These can cause first- to third-degree burns, damage to the skin and other sensitive organs, and the chance to breed infection.

How to Prevent Them:
Do a routine check of appliances whenever children are around: make sure that the stove tops are off, that relevant appliances are switched off and unplugged when not in use, and that scalding-hot liquids are not left openly exposed on the dining table or counter. In addition, you should supervise bath time for very young children who cannot operate the tap independently. Make sure that they bathe with water that is at a gentle temperature for delicate skin.


Ultimately, no one can choose when and where an accident may occur. Life is unpredictable all the same, and there is always a chance that those who are most precious to you will get hurt. If children are in the equation, the stakes are even higher. As such, adults should confront the risk of childhood injury with both a responsive and preventive mindset.

This guide was written in the hope that the parents and guardians of children help their wards navigate the world as free from illness and injury as possible—and thus, on the path to completing a happy, healthy childhood.

Sources:

*This article is for informational purposes only and does constitute, replace, or qualify as RPL for our first aid training courses.

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