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Playground safety--United States, 1998-1999
Insights
Playground injuries affect many children annually. Implementing measures like safe fall surfaces, proper maintenance, and age-appropriate equipment can significantly reduce playground injuries in schools and child care settings.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Safety
- Public Health
- Injury Prevention
Background:
- Playground equipment use is the leading cause of injuries to children in school and child care settings, with approximately 211,000 U.S. children requiring emergency care annually.
- The National Program for Playground Safety (NPPS) was established to address this significant public health issue.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the current state of playground safety across various child environments.
- To identify key factors contributing to playground injuries.
- To inform the development of targeted injury prevention strategies.
Main Methods:
- A national survey of child care, elementary school, and park playgrounds was conducted between 1998 and 1999.
- The survey focused on four critical areas of playground injury prevention: supervision, equipment age-appropriateness, fall surface suitability, and equipment maintenance.
Main Results:
- Survey results indicated that playground injuries are prevalent and linked to specific environmental and supervisory factors.
- Key areas for improvement include the implementation of resilient surfacing, enhanced equipment maintenance protocols, and stricter adherence to age-appropriate equipment usage.
- Improved supervision practices were also identified as crucial for reducing injury rates.
Conclusions:
- Playground injuries in children are a significant concern, but preventable.
- Implementing evidence-based strategies focusing on safe surfaces, maintenance, supervision, and age-appropriate equipment can effectively reduce playground-related injuries.
- The findings support the NPPS national action plan for playground safety.
Abstract:
Each year approximately 211,000 U.S. children receive emergency department care for injuries sustained on playground equipment, making the use of this equipment the leading cause of injuries to children in school and child care environments. In response to the problem, the National Program for Playground Safety (NPPS) at the University of Northern Iowa (UNI) developed a national action plan that focuses on four areas of playground injury prevention: supervision, age-appropriateness of equipment, suitable fall surfaces, and equipment maintenance. During 1998-1999, NPPS surveyed a sample of the nation's child care, elementary school, and park playgrounds. This report summarizes the survey results, which indicate that playground injuries could be reduced by measures such as resilient surfacing below equipment, better equipment maintenance, improved supervision, and use of age-appropriate equipment.