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Childhood unintentional injuries: supervision and first aid provided
Annabel Jonkheijm1, Jenny Johanna Hendrijntje Zuidgeest, Monique van Dijk
1Department of Paediatric Surgery, Erasmus MC Sophia Children's Hospital, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
Insights
Unintentional injuries are common in young children, often due to falls or burns. Caregivers frequently provided inappropriate or incomplete first aid, highlighting the need for better supervision and accessible first-aid training.
Area of Science:
- Pediatrics
- Public Health
- Emergency Medicine
Background:
- Unintentional injuries pose a significant risk to children.
- Caregiver supervision and first aid quality are critical factors in managing pediatric injuries.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the circumstances surrounding unintentional injuries in children.
- To assess the appropriateness of first aid provided by caregivers to injured children.
Main Methods:
- Prospective study of 313 children (0-12 years) with unintentional injuries in Cape Town, South Africa.
- Caregiver interviews on injury circumstances and first aid provided.
- Expert classification of first aid as appropriate, incomplete, or inappropriate.
Main Results:
- Falls (39.6%), burns (23.9%), and motor vehicle crashes (10.5%) were leading causes of injury.
- Over a quarter of children (27.2%) were unsupervised or supervised by another child.
- First aid was provided in 43.1% of cases, with 53% being inappropriate or incomplete.
Conclusions:
- Young children are particularly vulnerable to unintentional injuries, exacerbated by inadequate supervision.
- There is a critical need for enhanced prevention education for parents and children.
- Improved accessibility and quality of first-aid training for civilians are essential to improve outcomes.
Background:
The aim of this study was to investigate the circumstances surrounding unintentional injuries of children and the appropriateness of the first aid provided by caregivers.
Materials And Methods:
This prospective study included children with aged range 0-12 years, who presented with an unintentional injury at the Trauma Unit of a hospital in Cape Town, South Africa, over a 3 month period. Caregivers were interviewed about the circumstances of the injury and the first aid provided. Experts classified the first aid as appropriate, appropriate but incomplete, or inappropriate.
Results:
A total of 313 children were included with a median age of 3.75 years. The most common causes of injury were falls (39.6%, n = 124), burns (23.9%, n = 75) and motor vehicle crashes (10.5%, n = 33). More than a quarter of the children (27.2%, n = 81) had been left under the supervision of another child below the age of 12. When the injury occurred, 7.1% (n = 22) of the children were unattended. First aid was provided in 43.1% (n = 134) of the cases. More than half of these interventions (53%, n = 72) were inappropriate or appropriate but incomplete.
Conclusions:
Especially young children are at risk for unintentional injuries. Lack of appropriate supervision increases this risk. Prevention education of parents and children may help to protect children from injuries. First-aid training should also be more accessible to civilians as both the providing of as well as the quality of first-aid provided lacked in the majority of cases.
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