Although cases of children and infants sick with COVID-19 are not showing up in the numbers seen in adults, they are affected in other ways. Amid quarantines and school closings, some parents are forced to watch their children and work from home while others deal with the frustration of providing for their families without a steady income. This leaves children in a vulnerable position and at increased risk of injury – the No. 1 killer and cause of hospitalization among youth.
Doctors working with the Injury Free Coalition for Kids of Birmingham are on the frontlines treating injuries resulting from ATV accidents to dog bites. Children’s of Alabama Emergency Department Medical Director and University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) Professor Kathy Monroe, M.D., and Children’s Pediatric Emergency Medicine Physician and UAB Professor Michele Nichols, M.D., are doing all they can to raise awareness and address a likely increase in childhood injuries amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Injury prevention professionals emphasize the safety and well-being of children so that they remain injury-free.
“We must remain mindful and vigilant,” said Barbara Barlow, M.D., founder and executive director of the Injury Free Coalition for Kids. “Our sites across the country are working to find ways to help families address motor vehicle safety, home safety and the need for safe play spaces during the virus outbreak.”
“The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is encouraging families to help children to stay active and play outdoors, go on bike rides, and walks, but obviously while practicing social distancing,” said Injury Free Board President Lois Lee, M.D. “The CDC also says it’s important to take regular indoor activity breaks to stretch and dance as well as keep children socially connected by helping them reach out to friends and family via phone, video chats, and writing letters or cards when it is not possible to visit due to stay at home orders.”
For more information about how to keep kids safe and engaged, visit childrensal.org/coronavirus and click on the “COVID-19 KidsHealth and Resources” tab.
In addition to keeping children injury-free, the CDC offers the following tips to help families stay healthy and virus-free:
• Cleaning hands often using soap and water or alcohol-based hand sanitizer
• Avoid people who are sick (coughing and sneezing)
• Clean and disinfect high-touch surfaces daily in household common areas (e.g. tables, hard-backed chairs, doorknobs, light switches, remotes, handles, desks, toilets, sinks)
• Launder items including washable plush toys as appropriate in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions. If possible, launder items using the warmest appropriate water setting for the items and dry items completely. Dirty laundry from an ill person can be washed with other people’s items.
Cold-like symptoms such as fever, runny nose, cough, shortness of breath, vomiting and diarrhea have been associated with COVID-19 in children and are reasons for contacting primary care providers.
About Injury Free Coalition for Kids
The Injury Free Coalition for Kids is among the country’s most effective injury prevention programs. It is a national program developed with funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation comprised of hospital-based, community-oriented programs whose efforts are anchored in research, education and advocacy. Currently, the Coalition includes more than 30 sites located in just as many cities, each housed in the trauma center of their participating institution. It is run under the guidance of a board comprised of Coalition members and approved by the organization, operated by a set of bylaws established by the governing board.
