Warm weather causes children to swarm onto the playgrounds at parks, schools and other public facilities. The Department of Health and Hospitals’ Office of Public Health, along with other agencies, wants to make sure bumps, bruises and broken bones do not spoil a good time.
Gov. Mike Foster proclaimed Playground Safety Week April 21-25 to encourage prevention of playground injuries and raise awareness about the issue. LDH-OPH is working with Louisiana’s Community Injury Prevention Program to inform citizens of the state about ways to reduce the number of playground injuries.
“Since more children will want to play outdoors during the spring and summer months, it is important that we use this week to inform parents, educators and everyone else about ways to prevent accidents and injuries,” said Secretary David W. Hood.
The majority of playground injuries occur between April and June, so Safety Week is time-appropriate. Some ideas local park and recreation management groups can implement to prevent children getting hurt include providing proper supervision, age-appropriate equipment and materials to cushion falls. Playground supervisors also need to provide regular equipment maintenance.
OPH has compiled a “Playground Safety Kit” that will be sent to the nine OPH regions throughout the state. The injury prevention coordinator for each region will disseminate the information to local groups, including childcare centers and recreational groups to promote safe playtime.
For more information on playground injuries and how to prevent them, please visit the OPH Web site link http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/playgr.htm.
the health unit.