Grandparenting
Childproofing Tips for Grandparents
By Evelyn Hanes, R.N.
Oct/Nov 2001

Look around. Are cleaning products locked away from curious hands? Where do you keep your vitamins, blood pressure pills and aspirin?

Whether it's what you've dreamed of for years or something you are reluctant to admit, you are a grandparent! The time has come for you to assume your new role as official spoiler of the most beautiful baby ever to be born! Are you ready?

So what's to know? A stroll through the local "Kids 'R Complicated" can overwhelm anyone presented with the variety of convenience products and safety gadgets. There are feeding spoons that change color if the food is too hot, pacifiers that tell you the baby has a fever, toddler cups that really don't leak, and baby monitors that let you hear every precious baby sigh. And what are Boppies? Do you need one of those?

It's not all about convenience and cuteness, though. From years of childhood injury data, we know that unintentional injury is America's number one killer of children.

As a grandparent, you want to keep your grandchild as safe as you can while you enjoy spending time together. It is time to see your world through a child's eyes. You have to notice and remove hazards that could harm or kill. Many of the unintentional injuries that occur during childhood happen when the child is away from home, often at a grandparent's house.

Look around. Do you keep your plastic grocery bags where you can easily reach them? Your little one can reach them, too. The simplest steps you take to make your daily routine easier may be the very ones that lead to serious injury or death for your grandchild. Let's focus on some of the most common risks for children.

CHOKING AND SUFFOCATION
For infants under age one, suffocation is the leading cause of injury-related death. Most often this occurs where the baby sleeps. Use a firm mattress that fits tightly in the crib. Remove pillows, loose blankets, and soft toys from the crib, and don't hang anything above the crib with ribbons or strings longer than seven inches. Check the crib your children used before you put your grandchild in it. The slats should be spaced no farther apart than 2 and 3/8" to prevent head entrapment.

Place your baby "Back to Sleep." This campaign by the SIDS Institute and the American Academy of Pediatrics has cut the number of SIDS deaths in half. Many grandparents worry that an infant will spit-up and choke if put on their back to sleep. If you are concerned, prop the baby on his side, but never place a baby to sleep on his stomach before he is able to turn over alone.

Infants, toddlers and even older children can choke on almost anything. The most common dangers are small round objects: coins, small balls, balloons, hot dogs, candies, raisins, peanuts, grapes, carrots, and popcorn. Many people suggest using a toilet paper tube as a guide to tell if something is too small. If the object fits inside the roll, it is too small. Keep it away from children; or in the case of foods, cut the pieces as small as the tip of the child's little finger. That's a pretty small hot dog bite. And be prepared. Learn CPR, or at the very least, know how to relieve choking in infants and children.

MOTOR VEHICLE CRASHES
Whether you are taking your grandchild on a vacation or just to the movies, being on the road puts him at risk. Motor vehicle crashes are the greatest killer of children over age one. Over half of these crashes occur within 25 miles of home, on roads with posted speed limits of 40 mph or less. Make no exceptions! Never go anywhere in the car without having everyone-including YOU- buckled in safely. Know what is safest for the child's age and size. Children should ride in the back seat until they are 13 years old, especially if there is a passenger-side airbag. They should be in an approved child safety seat or booster seat until they are large enough to sit on the vehicle seat with feet flat on the floor, the lap belt across the hips (not the tummy), and the shoulder belt across the shoulder (not across the neck or under the arm). Surprisingly, this is not until the child is about 80 pounds and 4' 9" tall. *

DROWNING
Drowning is something you don't often think about unless you have a home pool or live near water; however, drowning is one of the leading causes of death for children. Around the house drowning can occur in bathtubs, toilets, spas, hot tubs, and cleaning buckets. Keep all children away from these dangers, especially top heavy, curious toddlers. Use a "Lid Lock" for your toilet. Make sure all home pools are fenced in with the gate locked. Use pool covers and alarms as an extra precaution. Get rid of any standing water outside, and never leave a young child unsupervised.

FIRES AND BURNS
Fire safety education for children and adults has lowered the death rate from fires by more than 50 percent over the past 10 years, but fires and burns are still responsible for more than 40,000 injuries and almost 600 deaths to children in this country. Burns can occur from stoves and other kitchen appliances, hot liquids and foods, chemicals, heaters, hot tap water, microwaves, electrical cords and plugs, grills, hot exhausts on lawn mowers, curling irons and electric rollers, fireworks, as well as actual flames from a fire. Have a working smoke alarm on every level of your home, and change the batteries every six months (tip: when you change your clocks for daylight savings time, change your batteries). Have an escape route planned, with window ladders from upper stories. Set hot water heater temperatures to 120 degrees or below. Keep matches, gasoline, lighters and other flammables locked away out of children's reach. Never allow a child to play with fireworks.

Before you stamp "return to parent" on that grandchild's head, take a deep breath. You can do this. For all the dangers discussed in this article and the many not covered, common sense rules. Always supervise children. Just because they are the cutest, smartest children ever born, they are still children with natural curiosities that make them explore and test the world around them.
For more information about child safety, call 706-475-5620 to register for the "Infant Safety and CPR" class taught at Athens Regional Medical Center.

*If you are unsure that you are using the correct safety seat or worry that it is not properly installed, have it inspected by someone who knows. ARMC and SafeKids of Georgia in the Athens Area offer free safety seat checks throughout the year. The next one scheduled is October 13, 10 a.m. - 12 noon at Toys 'R Us in Athens.

Statistical information taken from 2001 National SafeKids Campaign fact sheets. The Campaign can be accessed at www.safekids.org.

This column brought to you by Athens Regional Medical Center

Evelyn Hanes is a registered nurse in the Education Department of ARMC and the coordinator of SafeKids of Georgia in the Athens Area. She can be reached at ehanes@armc.org.