Free Car Seat Inspections by Appointment on September 21st
St. Mary’s Healthcare System for Children will offer free car seat inspections on Saturday, September 21, 2013 at its Bayside Campus in recognition of National Child Passenger Safety Week, which runs from September 15th to September 21st. Appointments are required in advance and can be made by calling 718- 281-8571. Inspections will be held at St. Mary’s Hospital for Children, 29-01 216 Street, Bayside.
According to the New York Department of Health, each year in New York more than 4,500 children up to age eight are treated at hospitals for injuries from motor vehicle accidents. Research shows that seventy-five percent of children are riding at risk because their car seats are not being used correctly. Using a safety seat the right way reduces the risk of child passenger fatalities by seventy-one percent and serious injury risk by sixty-seven percent.
St. Mary’s continues to be the forefront leader in promoting child safety, and for the past 12 years has been working with the Governor’s Traffic Safety Committee to train families on how to properly install infant, toddler, and booster seats. In their work, St. Mary’s certified child passenger safety technicians have found that over ninety percent of car seats are improperly installed.
In addition, children with conditions such as cerebral palsy, poor head/neck control and other medically complex conditions may need to use a special child restraint. As the largest provider of long-term care to children with medically complex conditions and New York’s City’s only post-acute care facility for children, St. Mary’s also has certified child passenger safety technicians trained in special needs transportation.
A properly installed car seat can mean the difference between life and death in the case of a crash, and it can also dramatically reduce the risk of injury for babies and toddlers. New York State law mandates that children use a safety seat until they are eight years old. St. Mary’s encourages families to make every ride a safe ride by following simple safety tips:
- The safest place for children of any age to ride is properly restrained in the back
- Always place children in age-appropriate car or booster seats in the back seat
- Buckle unused seatbelts
- Seat belts fit properly when they can be worn with the lap portion of the belt low and snug across the thighs, and the shoulder portion across the chest and shoulder
To have your car seat checked by a certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians at St. Mary’s, please call 718- 281-8571 to make an appointment. Spanish-speaking technicians are available. Appointments are also available year-round if you cannot make this event.
For more information, visit https://www.stmaryskids.org/resources/car-seat-safety/
