Spring is coming! 5 tips to baby proof your home.

Blue skies and sunny days – when the weather warms up we shed those extra layers of clothing and hit the outdoors. When we have little ones we know how important it is to be sun smart and keep them within arm’s reach around water at the beach or pool, but what about their safety around the home?

The majority of children’s injuries happen around the home. We shouldn’t wrap our kids up in cotton wool, they need to experience the world however we can make our homes safer to help prevent serious injuries. Here are 5 tips to help keep your child safe around the home this spring and summer:

1. Tip out the wading pool

Whether it is filling up a bucket for splashing around in or blowing up the wading pool, it is essential to always tip out the water when the kids are finished playing. Even though it may be tempting to leave the water in for another play, don’t do it. It only takes 20 seconds and 5cm of water for a child to drown –  don’t take the risk.

2. Crawl around on your hands and knees

One of the best ways to get another perspective on your home is to get down onto your hands and knees and crawl around your home. From curtain cords to electrical plugs, your child-height view will highlight hazards that you may miss as a grown-up

3. Keep the poisons out of reach

With the warmer weather come the flies and mozzies. It is imperative that we keep the repellents and other poisons of reach. Curious little people want to copy exactly what we do, so if they manage to get their little fingers onto a can of spray or drink some repellent you need to call the poisons information centre on 13 11 26. Keep all household cleaners, chemicals and medicines locked away out of reach.

4. Restrict the windows

On warmer nights it is great to leave a window open for ventilation, however to prevent children falling from windows, make sure the window has a device to restrict the opening to a maximum of 12.5cm. This is a Building Code of Australia law and  applies to openable windows more than 2m above the ground floor outside and within a child’s reach.

5. Fan safety

And when opening a window just isn’t enough, a fan can be an effective way to circulate air and cool a room. Be very careful of keeping the fan out of reach of little fingers, ensure the fan is on a stable surface and the cord is not dangling where a child could pull the fan onto themselves.

Kidsafe NSW have a fantastic home safety checklist you can download from their website here: http://www.kidsafe.com.au/Home%20Safety%20Checklist.pdf

Even though we can do our best to try and prevent accidents, it is so important to know how to help your child in a medical emergency. Make sure you are up to date with your baby and child First Aid, don’t put it off any longer, book a CPR Kids class with one of our paediatric nurse educators today.

Sarah has over 15 years experience in Paediatric Emergency Nursing in hospitals across Sydney. With a love of lifelong learning, Sarah has a Masters Degree in Clinical Practice, and founded CPR Kids in 2012.

CPR Kids empowers families and carers of children to recognise and respond to their sick or injured child, with confidence. A life. A finger. A pea up a nose. A practical guide to baby and child first aid is Sarah’s first book. The title was inspired by her youngest daughter, who decided it would be a good idea to put a pea in her nostril. Sarah lives in Sydney with her husband and 2 daughters.

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