Important Family Safety Information

Keeping Your Family Safe at Home

Believe it or not, the majority of accidents in the United States happen in or around the home. For this reason, ensuring that your home is safe will also ensure that your family will be safe within this familiar structure. The main problem rooms in the home are the bathroom and the kitchen. From spills in the bathtub to burns on the stove, these two rooms can be a veritable mouse trap of potential problems. For this reason, strive to learn about the common problem areas and correct any problems that may exist. Simple solutions like applying non-slip pads in the bottom of the bathtub or installing anti-scalding devices on your faucets can go a long way toward preventing accidents around the home.

Establish Backyard Safety Rules

When it comes to family safety, the backyard also has the potential to be a source of accidents. Establish backyard safety rules for everyone in your household. Many homeowners find that the installation of a privacy fence is a great way to further foster backyard safety, as children can avoid busy streets during their play time. If you have a swimming pool, stream, river, pond, lake, or any other body of water in your backyard, special safety steps should be taken. These steps include educating all individuals about the potential danger associated with water and teaching children to swim as early as possible. Additionally, the area should be fenced off with a special locking gate that can only be opened by adults. Finally, rescue devices should be in place in case someone falls into the water.

Other Common Safety Measures

There are several other common actions you can take to ensure the safety of your children. You should make sure your children wear helmets when they ride bicycles, scooters, or skateboards. Depending on the circumstances, you may also wish to have them wear elbow pads or knee pads. When riding in a car, children should be in a properly installed car seat or booster seat until they exceed the height and weight limits for these types of seats. If you are unsure if your car seats are installed correctly, you can take them to a nearest fire station and the firefighters will check them for you and assist you with proper installation if needed. Regardless of their age, children should always buckle up when riding in a vehicle. And children should not ride in the front seat of a car with air bags until they are old enough according to the manufacturer's recommendations. Following the recommended guidelines for children's safety in a vehicle could save their life if you are ever in a vehicle collision. There are also many items that you should keep out of the reach of your children. Some of these items include: medicines, cleaning supplies, and weapons. Firearms should be kept in a locked safe so that children cannot access them. 

Develop a Fire Safety Plan

Fire safety is a huge part of family safety. Especially in households with young children, educating everyone in the family about how to act and react to a fire is critical. For this reason, you should develop a fire plan and regularly practice the plan with everyone in your family. A fire plan should include several different escape routes from each room in the home in case of fire. All upstairs bedrooms should have collapsible ladders stowed in the event that it becomes necessary to escape from a window. Also, smoke detectors should be regularly tested, with the batteries being changed on a regular basis. Typically, batteries in smoke detectors need to be changed twice a year, which is why many fire departments encourage individuals to change their batteries when they change the time on their clocks for daylight savings time.

Talk With Your Family About Safety Measures

All families should have a special time to discuss family safety. This time should include an open discussion about any aspects of life that could put a family member in danger. Such dangers can also include virtual ones, as cyberspace has become a place of concern among parents. The internet seems to be a hanging point for predators, especially those interested in harming children. For this reason, careful monitoring and encouraging your children to report any suspicious activity is key to keeping the internet in your home secure. Also, if your child is experiencing any problems outside of the home, they should be brought up in these safety discussions so that you can determine the best way to handle these problems.