Lyle Karasiuk

By Lyle Karasiuk

Safety First

Safety Around the House

Oct 15, 2019 | 1:27 PM

As we travel around the house doing daily chores from cooking to cleaning we often forget through the eyes of a child things look a lot different.

Let’s take a look around our house, sort of like a house detective and ensure that our home is our castle, but as safe as it can be.

How many hang their tea towel after drying dishes on the handle of the oven? I’ll bet quite a few of us. So what happens if a small child grabs the towel and pulls on it? The oven door might open, if the oven is shut off not a big worry but if the oven is on then significant burns are possible.

Often a child is invited to help mom or dad prepare the meal. We encourage them to pull up a chair and help stir a pot, of course always under direct supervision the child stands on the chair helping. But what does this action teach the child?

To reach the stove, pull up the chair but when the parent puts something to cook but walks away to answer the phone, do other chores, attend to another child, the child who previously under supervision now seizes the opportunity to slide up the chair to check out what’s cooking. Without someone there they can easily pull over the boiling hot pot onto themselves. Teaching a child the action under supervision encourages then to take actions themselves.

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Any cupboard at ground level is just waiting to be explored by a child.

The curiosity is just too great to open bang on pots, open food boxes or explore containers. Containers that might contain cleaning chemicals or other hazardous items. Often a small child will open these bottles and taste the liquid realizing it’s yucky and spill more on themselves than they drank. But don’t take the chance, lock cupboards but also store any hazardous items high out of your child’s reach.

What if you suspect your child was poisoned what would you do? Calling 9-1-1 to summon paramedics is one option but if the child is awake, breathing normally and does not appear to be injured then another good choice is to contact the poison control center. Found on the inside page of the telephone directory is the number 1-866-454-1212 or www.padis.ca.

Call the Saskatchewan Poison Control Center will give you the best results when the child is awake, breathing normally and if able, talking. Never make the call to poison control if you cannot wake up the child or they appear to not be breathing normally. In these incidents CALL 9-1-1 first! Serious injuries like this require immediate call to the paramedics.

Lots of common things like cleaners, soaps, makeup, vitamins, prescription medications, solvents, paints and more can be dangerous to your child.

How many people especially grandparents prepare a meal but set their medications out next to the plate?

The bright colored pills are a tempting treat when the child crawls up into the chair for the meal. Never call medications candy nor place them in the open for a curious child to “taste.” It is easy to see that travelling around the house there can be many different hazards for our children.

Chemicals, hot stoves, sharp object like knives, stairs, broken pieces off of toys and more might land you in the back of an ambulance with paramedics or the hospital emergency room.

Be a house detective and spot the hazard before your child does.

With cooler weather we are defiantly spending more time indoors. More time indoors means a greater chance for cold and flu. Watch for notices on the upcoming flu vaccination clinics and get your shot in the arm. For the health and the health of your family or co-workers get the flu shot.

Remember that good proper hand washing will prevent the spread of germs. Wash your hands often and avoid that those watery eyes, runny nose and cough signaling the likely culprit is the common cold.

Keep safe and be safe, get trained too!