Most infant accidents preventable
Whenever a child dies an accidental death there is always plenty of blame to go around. But experts say what we need to focus on is saving lives and preventing injuries. Needless deaths can be avoided through increased supervision and taking just a few minutes to hide a dangerous cleaning product, put a baby gate across a staircase, buckle a child to a car seat or empty a pigtail bucket full of water. Tonight Janelle Chanona finds out how a baby can drown in even a small amount of water and what you should do to revive a child who has had such an accident, if you can get there in time, that is.
Dr. Javier Magaña, Pediatrician
“There have been cases where a mother is bathing a child, someone comes to the house or maybe the phone rings and the mother leaves the baby. The baby slips on the soap, knocks his head, and becomes unconscious. The nose, the water is just one or two inches high, once the nose is covered, that’s enough water for us to drown.”
In Belize last year, two children under the age of two died as a result of drowning. Pediatrician Dr. Javier Magaña, firmly believes that infant drowning deaths are the fault of the parents who don’t realize young children need constant supervision.
Dr. Javier Magaña
“In Belize we have an excessively hot temperature right now. Children will, when they approach a bucket of water and they see a little bit of water in there, they will try to get in there because of the heat. He or she will lean over to an extent that the balance, he will get unbalanced and will flip over and drop into the bucket of water.
The strangest case of drowning I’ve seen in Belize is a child that fell in a washing machine. One has to realize that most of these accidents that happen in the home is due to neglect or negligence by the part of the parents.”
Small children cannot foresee danger and therefore cannot be left to fend for themselves. Since so many household accidents can be prevented, the Matron Roberts Center offers a course about accident prevention in the home to first time mothers in an effort to decrease the number of child injury cases.
Dorla McKenzie, Public Nurse, Matron Roberts Center
“Safety is so important and you could never have too many eyes and hands to take care of an active infant.”
It only takes a baby three minutes to drown.
Javier Magaña
“If a parent comes about a minute or two minutes after the child has fallen in the water, the baby will be in a deep coma and yes it can lead to brain damage and several side effects.”
The first response in an accident is critical. Call for medical help immediately and if you have been trained to administer CPR, begin as soon as possible. The Belize Red Cross regularly offers a free course in CPR. Adela Paz agreed to demonstrate the procedure for infants to News Five.
Adela Paz, CPR Instructor, Belize Red Cross
“I would survey the scene to find out if it is safe for me to help and once I have done that, then quickly my next response is checking for a response of the child. If nothing, then quickly, I would tilt the head a little bit, opening the airway and then go immediately to check to see if the child is breathing. If the infant is not breathing, then I need to check for a pulse.”
Q: “Where do we find the pulse of an infant?”
Adela Paz
“From the elbow to the shoulder, halfway, and we call this brachial pulse. Once we have done that and if we find out that the infant is not breathing and there is no pulse, then immediately I will administer CPR. Because this is an infant, what I am going to do is place my mouth — I am an older person — and entirely seal both the nose and mouth and I’m going to give my first two breaths. I have done that. It is important to keep checking for a pulse. If there is no pulse, then I look right across the nipple and I use two fingers and give five chest compressions. It is important to keep checking. If nothing then you go back and give one breath then keep checking and repeat again.”
It is important to keep monitoring the child and to check if the child has begun breathing on its own. Rescue breathing can mean the difference between the life and death of your child. If you are able to revive the child you must still seek medical attention immediately. Janelle Chanona for News Five.
Knowing CPR can help in an emergency, but the best way to save children’s lives is not to let curious little ones get into dangerous situations to begin with. Dr. Magaña says while infant drowning is a problem he sees more cases of burns after children have been allowed to play near the stove. He advises parents to keep their children out of the kitchen and never leave small children unsupervised. Once they are mobile, walking or crawling, they are in danger.
