Safe Kids Are No Accident

April 2000 - Safe Kids Are No Accident

by Sam N. Gregorio and Richard H. Middleton, Jr.

As we approach summer and the end of the school year, despite the promise of summer fun, we must all be aware of the risk of serious injury.

It's no coincidence that some physicians refer to the warm months as "trauma season."

The majority of childhood injuries occur between May and August.

Despite advances in safety, in 1996 alone nearly 6,300 children died from unintentional injuries, and each year more than 14 million children—one out of four—are injured seriously enough to require medical attention. Of those, nearly 120,000 children are permanently disabled.

Injury rates vary with a child's age, gender, and socioeconomic status.

Younger children, males, and poor children suffer disproportionately. These alarming statistics about the cost of preventable injury has prompted the National SAFE KIDS Campaign to hold a week-long public awareness initiative every May to help show parents that they can prevent or minimize needless injuries to their children.

The National SAFE KIDS Campaign is the first national organization dedicated solely to the prevention of unintentional childhood injury. It was launched in 1988 in response to one distressing statistic: More children under age 14 were being killed by what were referred to as "accidents" (sports injuries, crashes, fires, etc.) than by any other cause.

From the start, SAFE KIDS has worked to develop injury prevention strategies such as holding public outreach and awareness campaigns, endorsing legislation, stimulating hands-on community activities and working to make injury prevention a public policy priority.

This year, SAFE KIDS will focus on sports injury prevention. Nearly one million children ages 5 to 14 are treated in emergency rooms each year for sports injuries such as concussions, broken bones and dislocated joints—injuries that can lead to a lifetime of disability and pain.

From May 6-13, 2000, safety activities and educational programs are scheduled in communities across America. The National SAFE KIDS Campaign relies on the support of more than 270 state and local coalitions in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.

For online information on how you can participate in this year's SAFE KIDS Campaign, visit http://www.safekids.org.

Richard H. Middleton, Jr., president of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America, is a partner in the Savannah, GA, law firm of Middleton, Mixson, Orr & Adams.

Sam N. Gregorio, president of Louisiana Trial Lawyers Association, is a sole practitioner in Shreveport.

Reprinted with permission of Louisiana Trial Lawyers Association, P. O. Box 4289, Baton Rouge; (225) 383-5554 or (800) 354-6267.