JERSEY CITY – With more than 2,600 children under 13 involved in a car crash every day – or one child every 33 seconds – parents need to be extra vigilant about keeping kids safe in cars. And while most families put kids in car seats, the latest research from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) shows that 59 percent of car seats are not installed correctly.
To bring parents easy-to-access expert advice to protect their children in cars, Safe Kids Worldwide has launched a new resource, the Ultimate Car Seat Guide at www.UltimateCarSeatGuide.org.
This is particularly timely with this week being Child Passenger Safety Week. This culminates on Saturday, Sept. 24, when Safe Kids will host nearly 500 car seat events and inspection stations across the country, offering guidance from Certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians on proper car seat and booster seat installation and usage.
This includes Jersey City Medical Center, a RWJBarnabas Health facility, hosting a Seat Check Saturday event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Target Store Parking Lot, 100 14th St., Jersey City. Parents and caregivers are encouraged to attend this free event to have their car seats and booster seats checked for proper installation.
The guide, developed with support from General Motors, gives expert guidance to parents, particularly new parents, on the important decisions they face when choosing and using a car seat. It offers parent-friendly tips on how to fit a child into a car seat and how to know when it is time to move to a new type of seat.
Based on the wisdom gained from checking nearly two million car seats at Safe Kids Buckle Up events, the guide provides parents the latest best practices to give kids the best protection. Advice covers all stages of a child’s development, from the first car seat until the child is ready to ride with a seat belt.
“We are constantly asked by parents what kind of car seat to buy, how to install it properly, and when a child should move into a booster seat,” said Marissa Fisher, RN Injury Prevention Manager, and a trauma nurse at Jersey City Medical Center. “Not every parent can make it to one of our car seat checkup events held by Safe Kids Hudson County each year, but with the Ultimate Car Seat Guide, we can reach more parents with helpful tips to protect kids on the move.”
Our Digital Archive from 2000 – 2016
