Accident-proof your home

We all relate the word ‘home’ to warmth, comfort, peace, safety, happiness among others. We need to make our children see it that way too. This would be by keeping if free from accidents, which bring lots of discomfort and even sadness. Make your home a place everyone loves to be with the following tips:

Plan ahead

• Get down on your hands and knees and crawl around to view potential hazards; from a child’s perspective
• Have a list of emergency phone numbers in your home
• Learn first aid skills

Kitchen

• When cooking, turn all pot handles on the stove inward or place them on back burners where children can’t reach
• If possible, have a smoke detector/alarm in your home
• Unplug all electric appliances when not in use. Put the cords out of reach
• Keep matches and lighters out of reach
• Keep knives, forks, scissors, and other sharp tools in a drawer with a childproof latch
• Keep chairs and step-stools positioned away from the cooker
• Have an emergency ladder on upper floors of your home in the event of a fire. Keep the ladder in an easy to reach place
• Most fires and burns occur in the kitchen. To decrease your child’s chances of a burn, never allow them to play in or near the kitchen.
• Install a fire extinguisher

Furniture

• Don’t use a tablecloth if you have a crawling child or toddler
• Move furniture, such as beds, sofas and chairs, away from windows to prevent children from climbing up and falling out
• Install safety bars or window guards on upper-storey windows
• Secure bookshelves and other furniture with wall brackets so that they can’t-be tipped over
• Put a protective padding on coffee tables, furniture, and counter-top corners with sharp edges
• Keep stairways clear of tripping hazards, such as loose carpeting or toys. Secure rugs to floors or fit them with anti-slip pads underneath

Stairs

• Place a guard on railings if your child can fit through the rails on stairs
• Place safety gates at the top and bottom of every stairway
• Ensure walkways and outdoor stairways are well lit

Bathroom

• Keep all medication bottles, pills, coins, scissors, and any other small or sharp objects out of reach
• Never leave children unattended in the bathroom or the bathtub
• When discarding old medicine bottles, dispose off any pills or liquid left in the bottle by flushing them down the toilet or sink
• Put cold water in the bath first and then add hot. Not the other way around

Outdoors

• Keep all garbage cans securely covered
• Ensure all outdoor swing set parts or other equipment are securely fastened and free from rust, splinters, and sharp edges
• Cushion the surface beneath the swing with soft material such as sand, mulch or saw dust to absorb the shock of a fall
• Remove any potentially poisonous houseplants
• Institute a no-smoking rule in your home to protect children from tobacco smoke.

END: BL 33/ 31