The Safe Waitakere Injury Prevention project aims to
reduce the incidence and severity of unintentional injuries
to all people in Waitakere through a variety of spheres of
influence. These include engaging with the community to
raise awareness and promote education and active prevention;
educating existing providers; changing organisational
practice and influencing public policy and legislation.
Safe Waitakere Injury Prevention has been working with
partners from across the city to develop resources to raise
awareness of the tragic issue of driveway run-over.
In 2006 Safekids launched their National resources around
this issue, using the key message 'Check where the kids are,
there's no going back'. Utilising this message the regional
Driveway Run-over Prevention Project group has developed a
range of initiatives including an interactive resource for
community use.
Initially, conversations around driveway safety will be
opened at a Well Child visit by the health practitioner.
This involves inserting a sticker into the Well Child book
to remind carers to check where the children are when
vehicles are moving in the driveway.
Due to the high rate of male drivers involved in this injury
issue, a gift will be left with the care-giver to pass on to
a male driver in their family. This will encourage further
discussion of the issue in the family and create an
additional level of awareness.
The community interactive resource has been utilised at a
number of local events and the feed back from people who
have been involved is very positive. The resource is
designed to highlight the size and scope of the blind spots
of vehicles when reversing. It has been great to see the
effect this resource has on participants. It takes only a
few moments of a person's time and only a few seconds to
understand the dangers for young children when vehicles are
reversing.
Child Safety Group
Family at the beach
This group is an inter-agency collaboration which has
been working, to reduce injuries to children, for many
years. Agencies represented are Health Promoting Schools,
Road Sense, Road Safety, Plunket, Fire Service Education,
Water Safety Auckland and Safe Waitakere. Other agencies
work collaboratively with the group such as West Fono Health
Trust, Waipareira Pasifika, local swim schools and local
businesses.
Each year key injury issues are highlighted through the
national Safekids campaign which the Child Safety Group
takes out into the community. Activities are developed to
promote the key messages and raise awareness with
care-givers and families.
For the coming year, July 2008-June 2009, the themes are
Water Safety and Burns/Fire prevention. Both issues have
significant injury numbers in Waitakere with more than
twelve children per year affected by burns and an average of
two children per year involved in a drowning incident.
Even though we do not have high incidents of death from
either of these injuries, the long-term effects and on-going
treatment for both have a huge impact on both the families
and our communities.
Often the simplest of messages can influence a decision that
has the capacity to change a family's life forever.
For
more information email
