Like most toddlers, Becky was curious. She was a healthy, active 17 month-old girl, who liked to explore. Because of this, her mother was very cautious about keeping her safe. She had locks on all the cabinets to keep Becky from getting into dangerous cleaners, medicines, and other chemicals. But locks are only so effective. When the cabinet under the sink was left open, Becky explored, and found some lamp oil that her mom stored there. Becky was able to open the lid, and tried to drink some of the lamp oil. But because of the chemical properties of the oil, some of it went into her lungs. Becky became terribly ill, was taken to the ER, and directly admitted to the pediatric ICU.
I was a second-year resident when Becky (not her real name) came in that day. She was the sickest child I’d ever seen at that time. She was immediately placed on a ventilator, and continued to spiral downwards over the next 24 hours. She almost died multiple times, but we were able to save her. Over the next several weeks, she gradually improved, and much later, was able to go home. But because of the damage done, she was deaf, and had cognitive delays.
This case is an illustration of how difficult it can be to keep your home truly “child proof.” However, there are some simple things you can do to prevent this from happening to you.
Can’t Prevent All Accidents
It’s true that you can’t prevent all accidents, but the goal is to prevent the most serious ones. These typically involve poisoning and burns. Less common, but equally devastating, are injuries from guns.
Most children start to crawl around 9 months old, but many do so well before that age, so make sure you make your home safe starting at 6 months. One strategy is to crawl on your hands and knees all over the house, and see it as your infant or toddler sees it. That may reveal dangers you didn’t know about.
There are many ways to keep your home safe, and the following are just some of the more important measures to take:1-3
This post was published on August 1, 2019 11:51 AM
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