Cape Town - Each year thousands of children pass through trauma wards, victims of accidents that could have been avoided.
For this reason the Children’s Hospital Trust will build the Childsafe Research and Educational Centre at the Red Cross War Memorial Children’s Hospital.
The project seeks to reduce the frequency, minimise the severity and prevent the occurrence of child injuries, says Professor Sebastian van As, president of Childsafe South Africa and head of the Red Cross trauma unit.
Red Cross treated 7 818 trauma cases during 2012. Of these, 1 183 were for burn injuries, while 3 114 involved falls. Nearly 900 children were treated for vehicle accidents.
The trust will be a beneficiary of donations taken every night at the month-long Jive Cape Town Funny Festival at the Baxter Theatre. The festival will run until June 30.
The money will be collected during the intervals, and festival organisers say all of it will go to the trust, which will then channel the money to the Childsafe project.
The total funding needed for the new centre is R6.4 million.
Van As says the centre will be built at Red Cross hospital and will be easily accessible to patients’ families and the public.
The focus will be on educational and skills training programmes on child safety, research, and providing input into child safety legislation. Research from Childsafe South Africa has produced literally hundreds of scientific articles and has been the basis for advocacy and lobbying for changes in legislation, says Van As.
Recent activities have included the changes in legislation regarding firearm ownership and seatbelt use in motor vehicles.
A breakdown of some of the reasons for patients being treated in the Trauma Unit at Red Cross Children’s Hospital
Motor Vehicle Accidents: 876
Pedestrian: 622
Passenger (restrained): 37
Passenger (unrestrained): 102
Passenger (bakkie/minibus): 61
Cycle: 37
Motorcycle: 9
Other e.g boat, train, plane, horse: 8
Assault injuries: 291
Burn injuries: 1 183
Falls: 3 114
Sharp instrument: 177
Firearm: 20
Machinery: 4
Dog bite: 92
Other bite: 23
Suffocation: 5. - Cape Argus