I’m just days back on the job after maternity leave (details coming soon) and I’ve done two news interviews about the importance of bicycle safety – including helmets – due to a recent bicycle accident death.
I watched a lot of news while I was on leave and was heartbroken at how many stories we’ve had locally related to bike accidents. Our emergency department at Dayton Children’s has seen a record number of injuries related to bike accidents – 118 since April. We’ve seen 10 bike vs. vehicle accidents where 4 children were not wearing helmets. These are only the injuries that came through our emergency department and do not include injuries where a child was taken to another hospital, urgent care or doctor’s office.
It’s been a dangerous summer.
My sound bites in the news interviews will hopefully be heard and taken to heart.
- A helmet should be purchased whenever a bicycle (or other wheeled vehicle) is purchased.
- Make sure your child wears a helmet for each and every ride.
- Helmets should always be properly fitted – that includes using the chin strap.
- Begin safe habits early – your child should wear a helmet whenever he or she gets their first set of wheels
- Ban together with other parents (neighborhood parents, school parents, etc.) and commit that all parents will require the use of helmets for their kids.
- Aside from wearing a helmet, kids need to follow the rules of the road by following traffic laws.
- Kids should not be distracted (texting, listening to music, etc.) when riding their bikes
And finally, as a parent, if you are riding a bicycle make sure you model safe behaviors.
I hope our current trend can be reversed ensuring a safe and happy summer for our kids!
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