Child Passenger Safety : Improving Booster Seat

Dana Maliepaard was a young girl who went to Glasgow High School and was involved in an unrestrained car accident. Dana’s mother, Christie Maliepaard, believes that it is necessary to share Dana’s story with others so that they may learn from it. Dana’s story is used to show teen drivers that it is not only expected, but necessary to wear a seat belt. By wearing a seat belt when driving a car or riding in one, you are able to not only save your own life, but the ones of the people who care about you.

The study of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia found that specific groups of teens, including country residents, African-Americans, those with low grades or attending lower-socioeconomic school districts, and drivers of pickup trucks, reported the lowest use of seat belts. However, seat belt use among these groups was higher in states with primary enforcement seat belt safety laws. This is excluding the children who, in all states, are required to be buckled in a child restraint or booster seat by their guardian, the people most at risk are teens. A 2012 online query conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), car crashes is the number one killer of teens in the U.S. Teens have the lowest rate of seat belt use compared to any other age group and they

“The risk of motor vehicle crashes is higher among 16 to 19 year olds than among any other age group.” (Teen Drivers: Fact Sheet 1) “The presence of teen passengers increases the crash risk of unsupervised teen drivers. The risk increases with the number of teen passengers.” (Teen Drivers: Fact Sheet 1) In the United States motor vehicle accidents are the number one cause death in teens. “In 2010, seven teens ages 16 to 19 died every day from motor vehicle injuries.” (Teen Drivers: Fact Sheet 2) This alarming number of casualties could be prevented by educating our teenage drivers prior to them being on their own and operating a couple ton weighing

Risk for trauma related to misuse of seat restraints and physical proximity to vehicle pathways.

In today’s society, and even generations before us, kids safety is very important. Also, traveling in an automobile is

Wearing seatbelts reduces the chances of injury by 50%. Imagine you running as fast as you can into a wall, you’d expect to be pretty messed up after right? Wear a seatbelt to avoid human collision. Not wearing a seatbelt is the leading cause of car accidents for people under the age of 35. You may be a careful driver, but you can’t control the actions of other drivers. So, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

(Now that we have talked about your risk of an accident and how it takes your attention off the road now let us talk about it being the leading cause of death in kids between the ages 15-19.)

According to NHTSA, 13,941 lives were saved by seat belts in 2015 while an additional 2,814 could have been saved if properly restrained (2017). One impact of seat belt usage is reducing the risk serious or fatal injuries by about half. The CDC reported in 2009, 53% of occupants killed in crashes in the U.S. were not wearing seat belts (2014). According to data collected in 2008 by NHTSA, seat belts have saved an estimated 225,000 lives (2009). The benefit of wearing a seat belt can help increase chances of surviving a crash with little or no

Motor vehicle crashes are identified as the leading cause of death in children under 19 years of age across the United States (Sauber-Schatz, West, & Bergen, 2014). Due to the large number of child deaths that occur each year, education regarding the proper use of child passenger safety seats must be provided to families. According to Basco, Hletko, West, and Darden (2009), although death and injury caused by motor vehicle accidents are deemed accidental, they are

2 Evidence:The increase in road traffic accidents and the seat belt compliance rate contribute to higher rates of injuries resulting from seat belt use.

(Booster Seat Safety, Baby Center) In crashes the belt can do serious damage to a child instead of help them. Across the states 43 percent of children who were improperly restrained of not restrained at all died in a car crash. (Shots, 43 Percent of children who died...) children are the ones most affected by this problem because seat belts are made for adults and they are not made for

Many parents lack education on, or do not fully know, proper car seat use and the consequences of improper car seat safety implementation. Car seat safety is important for children as they face increase risk of injury at certain ages or physical size.

For the people who use the excuse that "They are just going around the corner" should realize that 80% of traffic fatalities occur within a 25-mile radius of your home and at a speed of 40 miles an hour. Buckling up to drive around the block is probably the best time to do so. Everyone knows that car crashes can cause death; yet because people do not buckle up all the time thousands of people still die in traffic crashes yearly. Seatbelts can save your life in a crash and can reduce your risk of a serious injury. Seat belts keep drivers and passengers from being ejected through windows or doors. This is important because your chances of being killed are five times greater if you are thrown from the vehicle. Thousands of people who die in car crashes each year might still be alive today if they had only been wearing their seat belts.

Did you know that every hour, someone dies in a car crash for not wearing his or her seat belt? When you are driving or even riding in a vehicle, buckling your seat belt will decrease your chance of death or serious injury, if you are involved in a severe accident. Seat belts are there regarding to your safety and protection for the prevention of your life being in danger. In 2015, seat belt use in passenger vehicles saved an estimated 13,941 lives, according to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (Seat Belts np). Recognizing the importance, consequences, and how an individual can deal with the problem are the key aspects to this solution.

In recent times, child death in the back seat of their parent cars has become rampant. Such tragedy often leaves families broken apart and sometimes changes the lives of other relative left behind. This unfortunate death, injuries and the others that do occur among our children is, however, a shows some aspect of the larger picture. In the United States, lots of children suffer from heatstroke and other forms of illness. Children in this situation will go a long way to affect such individuals since they go through a whole lot of painful trauma. Most cases, it does happen unintentionally yet the numbers are alarming and is unacceptable.