When car accidents happen, they’re almost always “out of nowhere.” You typically don’t prepare for them, other than to have seat belts fastened and car seats secured.
But a Michigan Fire Dept. warned this week there’s more you can and should do.
The department shared a Facebook post that advised parents to tape a piece of paper to their kids’ car seats with a few facts written down:
- Kid’s name and date of birth
- Parent’s names and dates of birth
- Pertinent medical information/conditions
- Any medications the child is on
- Emergency contact (other than someone who’d likely be in the car)
Mark McIsaac, a firefighter with the Rose City Area Fire Department, told All the Moms that first responders’ ability to act quickly (and therefore save lives) is very difficult when parents are unconscious from a car wreck and the kids are too young to provide necessary information.
“Any information we can get for someone who doesn’t speak aids us and our ability to care for them,” he said, “because we have to relay the information we collect to other authorities (like emergency medical personnel).”
The tag is also helpful when perhaps the kid is not injured but the parent is.
“I wouldn’t want my child to have to go with a stranger and be more or less passed around a hospital while somebody’s taking care of me,” he said.
Providing an emergency contact to care for the child can make the child feel more comfortable or safe.
Making it a common practice
McIsaac said he doesn’t see a lot of people tagging their child’s carseat, but he hopes it becomes a common practice with time.
He proposed the idea that car seat manufacturers provide a sticker space on each carseat for parents to fill out the necessary information.
