Maternal and Child

Health Coalition

of Greater Kansas City

 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Press Release

 

SAFE KIDS Educates Parents and Kids

 about the Importance of Role-Modeling Safe Behavior

National SAFE KIDS Week is April 30-May 7

 

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                                                  Contact:   Cesar Motts

May 2, 2005                                                                                                                816-283-6242 x249

 

 

Kansas City, MO- In celebration of National SAFE KIDS Week, members of the Metro KC SAFE KIDS Coalition  will educate parents and caregivers about the need to set good examples for children through safe behavior.

 

New research released by the National SAFE KIDS Campaign and Johnson & Johnson finds that parents are not consistently role-modeling safe behavior for their children. While 98 percent of parents agree it is important to act as safety role models for their children, the percentage of parents who report actually practicing safe behaviors is often lower.

 

Children are more likely to practice safe behaviors if their parents also practice safe behaviors. This study shows that it is as important to ‘walk the walk’ as it is to ‘talk the talk’ when it comes to keeping children safe,” according to Deb Bumgardner, Metro KC SAFE KIDS Coordinator. “Wearing a life jacket, a bike helmet or a seat belt, and crossing streets at crosswalks are easy ways to keep kids safe. But, no matter how much parents talk about how important it is to do these things, if they aren’t doing it their kids aren’t likely to either.”

 

It is also important for parents to understand the risks related to activities.  For example:

  • Drowning is the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among children ages 1 to 14. Still, eighty percent were under some sort of supervision when the drowned.
  • Bicycles are associated with more childhood injuries than any other consumer product except the automobile.
  • Pedestrian injury remains the second leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among children ages 5 to 14.

 

In order to provide information to parents about injury prevention, Metro KC SAFE KIDS will partner with area programs, organizations and companies to provide a variety of educational activities during the week. They include:

 

Tuesday, May 2nd     Metro KC SAFE KIDS Coalition – 8:30 am -- Child Passenger Seat (CPS) Committee Planning Meeting at the Injury-Free KC Meeting – Truman Medical Center 5th floor

 

Tuesday, May 2nd 6:30 to 8:30 pm Health Fair, St. Patrick’s Middle School

   1066 N. 94th Kansas City, Kansas

 

Wednesday, May 3rd, 9:30 to 3:30 -- a Child Safety Seat (CSS) education and distribution event.through Independence Head Start at Henthorn Elementary - 23Rd & Kings Highway

 

Friday, May 6th, 3:00 to 7:00 pm -- a CSS Event by appointment only at the Salvation Army –39th & Westport RD

 

Saturday, May 7th

 

10:00 to 2:00 -- Health and Safety Fair – Linwood YMCA – 3800 E.Linwood Blvd.

          

10:00 to 2:00 -- CPS Check - General Motors’ Women’s/Mom’s Day at Broome Chevrolet -103rd and State Line. Members of Metro KC SAFE KIDS CPS Committee will educate women on the wisdom of using booster seats for children four and older.

 

CPS Check - 10:00 to 1:00 p.m. St Luke’s East – 10920 Elm Avenue (I-435 and Douglas) Lee’s Summit MO

 

Metro KC SAFE KIDS Coalition is a program of the Maternal and Child Health Coalition. The Maternal and Child Health Coalition is a nonprofit organization focused on improving the health of women and children in the Kansas City metropolitan area through community planning, education, advocacy and collaboration with organizations addressing infant mortality, immunization, childhood obesity, and child safety. More information about National SAFE KIDS Week is available from Cesar Motts at Maternal and Child Health Coalition, 6400 Prospect, Suite 216, Kansas City, Missouri, 64132, office phone (816) 283-6242, extension 249. Photo and interview opportunities available.

 

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