Staying safe at home

Things you can do to keep your child safe:

Childproof your home.

This is especially important when your child is learning to walk and becoming more mobile.

Safety in the Kitchen and Living room:

Scalding:

• Be careful with hot drinks – a cup of tea or coffee (with milk) spilling over a baby or young child can result in severe scalds 15 minutes after the drink has been made.
• Never heat your baby’s bottle in the microwave: the milk can be heated unevenly and could scald your baby’s mouth. Reheat in a bowl of warm water.
• Reduce the temperature setting of water heaters and/or install thermostatic mixing valves on individual taps.

Choking:

• Young children have small airways, when means that it doesn’t take much to block their windpipe which carries air to their lungs.
• Always supervise your children when they are playing. Watch out for older children sharing unsuitable objects with your younger child.
• Ensure that any food that young children are eating are small bite size pieces to avoid choking.

Safety in the Bathroom:

Drowning:

Babies can drown in just a few centimetres of water – very quickly and without noise or struggle. They need constant supervision when around water so make sure they are never left alone while bathing – not even for a few seconds.

Medicine and Poisons:

Store all medicines in child proof containers and well out of the reach of children. All medicines are potentially harmful to children.
See also www.poisons.ie

Driveways and Gardens

• Young children are especially at risk in driveways and carparks. They don’t yet realise how dangerous cars and bikes are and can get highly absorbed in whatever they are doing including chasing a ball behind a car!
• Always hold your child’s hand near cars, even in your own driveway. Explain why it is important that they hold your hand.
• Check and double-check where your child is before you reverse your vehicle. Reversing drivers find it very difficult to see small children behind their cars.
• Children should always be supervised when using outdoor play equipment.

* information taken from Lifestart Foundation Keep Safe Programme www.lifestartfoundation.org and HSE Child Safety Awareness Programme (CSAP) www.hse.ie/childsafety