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News Release
INFANT CAR SAFETY PROGRAM GETTING UNDER WAY
Feb. 12, 2007 — UPMC Northwest Auxiliary and UPMC Northwest’s Family Birthing Center are helping to sponsor a new infant car safety program. State Farm Insurance also is supporting the initiative, which includes an infant car seat loan program, car safety seat checks, and an Infant Emergency Contact System (IECS) that will help protect babies involved in traffic accidents. The IECS will allow emergency medical personnel to rapidly obtain information about an infant if his or her parents or other occupants are hurt in a crash and can’t speak for the child. The auxiliary and the birthing center are announcing the program in conjunction with Child Passenger Safety Week (February 11 to 17). This annual observance is intended to increase awareness of the need to protect children through the use of safety seats, booster seats, and seat belts. The new program is in keeping with UPMC Northwest Auxiliary’s long history of involvement in programs that advance the health and safety of children, including its Children’s Health Fair that draws hundreds of third grade students every year. “Children always have been an important focus for the auxiliary, and this is a way we can continue that tradition, along with our birthing center and the other sponsors,” says auxiliary coordinator Jill Williams. The auxiliary and birthing center will offer the new program starting Monday, Feb. 12, to expectant families who take part in UPMC Northwest’s monthly childbirth education classes and/or give birth at UPMC Northwest. Here are more details about each part of the program: Infant Car Safety Seats – For a $10 security deposit, families will be able to lease a new infant car safety seat that they can use for as long as the baby needs it. The auxiliary and the birthing center will launch this portion of the program with 38 new infant safety seats, and are seeking additional sponsors that would allow them to obtain more seats. “Our hope is that we can provide clean, safe infant car seats to those who otherwise may be unable to afford them,” Mrs. Williams says. Car Safety Seat Checks – To ensure that seats will perform as expected in an accident, four certified safety technicians – Mrs. Williams, Family Birthing Center staff nurse Tabitha Dotterer, RN, and auxiliary volunteers Jessie Start-Java (retired Allegheny County police officer) and Mary Ann Klim (retired nurse) – will conduct free checks of both infant and child safety seats. Checks will be available to any family who wishes to have a seat examined, not just participants in the hospital’s childbirth education classes and families who give birth at the hospital. If technicians judge that an older, used or other seat does not meet current safety standards, they will recommend that the family stop using it and obtain a safe replacement seat. Infant Emergency Contact System (IECS) – Families who sign up for the free IECS will receive three decals – one for the infant car safety seat, one for their vehicle’s rear view mirror, and one for an IECS form that the family returns to the auxiliary – that list an identifying code number and a Family Birthing Center telephone number where emergency responders can call for information about the baby. The birthing center will use the code number to identify the infant and parents, provide other emergency contacts, and give medical information that may be helpful to on-scene emergency personnel (blood type, allergies, medications, etc.). Local police, fire departments, and ambulance services have been informed about the IECS and know to look for the decals whenever necessary, Mrs. Williams says. “Many times in a crash situation, parents or others are not able to relate pertinent information about an infant or child in the accident with them,” Mrs. Williams says. “The IECS is a way for emergency medical personnel to get this information when no one in the vehicle can provide it.” Birthing center unit director Cheri Siverling, RN, says she is “pleased that the Family Birthing Center can assist with the IECS program, being the main contact for information on the child.” All told, the auxiliary and birthing center hope to reach as many as 250 families a year through the three components of the program. To learn more about these programs, contact the following: Infant Care Safety Seats, Mrs. Williams (814-676-7721) or Mrs. Start-Java (814-677-3840); Car Safety Seat Checks, Mrs. Start-Java; Infant Emergency Contact System, Mrs. Williams.
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