By Rene Hopkins
Safe Kids East Central
MCGHealth Children’s Medical Center

Your family car can be a lethal weapon if you have children.

Since 1998, there have been at least 364 hyperthermia or heat-related deaths of children, mostly 2 and under, who were left or trapped inside parked cars during warm weather. What makes these incidents even more tragic is the fact that they are completely preventable.

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a locked car sitting in the summer sun quickly turns into an oven, and temperatures can climb from 78 degrees to 100 degrees in just three minutes - or to 125 degrees in 6 to 8 minutes. Even on a relatively mild day, the temperature inside a car can get above 100 degrees. At those temperatures, kids are at great risk for heat stroke, which can lead to a high fever, dehydration, seizures and death.

Safe Kids East Central, led by the MCGHealth Children’s Medical Center, urges parents to be particularly thoughtful about their children’s safety by offering precautions to combat heat-related injuries in vehicles.

• Never leave your child unattended in a motor vehicle, even with windows open.
      
• Teach children not to play in, on or around cars.
      
• Always lock car doors and the trunk, and keep keys out of reach and sight of children. It is also recommended that you contact your automobile dealership about getting your vehicle retrofitted with a trunk release mechanism.
      
• Watch children closely around cars, particularly when loading or unloading items.
     
• Ensure that all children exit the vehicle at your destination. Get your kids out of the car first, and then worry about getting the groceries, etc., out of the car.
     
• Don’t overlook sleeping infants. If you are afraid that you might leave your sleeping infant or toddler in his or her car seat when you get out of the car, place a reminder on the dashboard or steering wheel. There are also alarms you can purchase.
     
• Make sure childcare providers and daycare workers have a plan to keep kids from being left in the provider’s car or van.
      
• Use a light covering to shade the seat of your parked car. Consider using windshield shades in front and back windows.
      
• Keep the rear fold-down seats closed to help prevent kids from getting into the trunk from inside the car.
      
• Be wary of child-resistant locks. Teach older children how to disable the driver’s door locks if they unintentionally become trapped in a vehicle.

Additionally, be on alert for cars that might have an unattended child left inside. If you see a child alone in a car, call 911 and help make sure the child gets out as soon as possible. And when a child is missing, besides checking the backyard pool and other bodies of water, be sure to look inside all nearby vehicles and their trunks.

Resist the temptation to leave the kids in the car - even if it is "just for a couple of minutes." Use the drive-through if it is available, take your kids inside, or find a sitter to stay home with them. Keep your kids out of hot, parked cars. It just isn’t safe.

MCG Health, Inc. (d/b/a MCGHealth) is a not-for-profit corporation operating the MCGHealth Medical Center, MCGHealth Children’s Medical Center, the Georgia Radiation Therapy Center, and related outpatient facilities and services throughout the state. For more information, please visit mcghealth.org.