Keeping Kids Safe at Grandma’s House

*We are partnering with the Consumer Healthcare Products Association Educational Foundation to educate parents and grandparents on the importance of putting medications up, away, and out of sight.

Like many of you, we are headed to grandma’s housed this summer and the kids couldn’t be more thrilled. At grandma’s house they get to stay up late, eat extra cookies, and bat their eyes and get pretty much anything they want. But sometimes grandma’s house is full of dangerous things like glass figurines that are easily knocked over, sharp knives in drawers a toddler can reach into, and medications a curious little one can find.

If there’s trouble, kids will find it.

June is National Safety month and as you are packing for holiday travel, please remember to put your medications Up and Away and Out of Sight, especially at grandma’s house.

 Up and Away and Out of Sight

According to the CDC, approximately 60,000 young children are brought to the emergency room each year because they got into medicines that were left within reach.

Medicines and vitamins help families feel well and stay well, but as parents and grandparents know, children are curious. Small children see those shiny bottles and perfectly shaped pills and want to play with them, even eat them.

Any medication or vitamin—even over-the-counter medicines—can be dangerous if taken in the wrong way or by the wrong person. This summer as you are headed out on vacation, remember that accidental ingestions don’t take a vacation.

For parents and grandparents, this means making a conscious effort to put all medicines Up and Away and Out of Sight not only at home, but when you’re packing your suitcase, staying in hotels, or visiting grandma’s house.

Keeping Kids Safe This Summer

Remember these three simple tips for safely storing medicines while on-the-go:

1. When packing for a trip, keep medicines in their original child-restraint containers. Although travel pill organizers and baggies might be more convenient, they often lack child safety features. You’d be amazed at what kids can open. Whenever I can’t get the pickle jar open, I just hand it to my two-year-old!
2. While staying at a hotel, store medicines and vitamins in a place a child can’t see or reach, like a high cabinet or even your hotel room safe.
3. As a guest in another person’s home, don’t be shy about asking your host to put medicines and vitamins out of sight and out of reach of your children. Most friends and family won’t mind at all!

Medicine Storage Tips

For Parents:

• Store all medicines in a safe location that is too high for children to see or reach.
• Never leave medicines or vitamins out on a kitchen counter or at a sick child’s bedside, even if you have to give them the medicine again in a few hours.
• Always lock the safety cap on a medicine bottle until you hear the “click.”
• Tell children what medicine is and why you are the only one that can give it to them.
• Never tell children medicine is candy so they’ll take it, even if your child doesn’t like to take medicine.

For Grandparents:

According to the Up and Away campaign, nearly 1 out of every 4 grandparents say they store prescription medicines in easy-access places. Don’t let your grandchildren become a statistic.

• Keep all medicines and vitamins up and away and out of sight. Store them in a high cabinet your grandchildren can’t reach or see.
• Keep purses, bags, or coats that have medications in them out of your grandchildren’s reach and out of their sight.
• Never leave medicines or vitamins out on a table, countertop, or bedside table when you know children will be around.
• Set a daily reminder to take your medications since they will be Up and Away and Out of Sight.

If Accidents Happen

If a child does happen to ingest a medicine or vitamin on accident, contact your pediatrician immediately and save the Poison Help number 800-222-1222 in all your family member’s phones so you will have it when you need it. You can also text POISON to 797979 to save the contact information in your phone. Cool!

This summer as you’re heading to grandma’s house, traveling on vacation, or inviting guests of your own, be mindful of where your medications are. For more information on the Up and Away and Out of Sight campaign, click here.

*Thank you to the Consumer Healthcare Products Association Educational Foundation for sponsoring this post and introducing us to their Up and Away and Out of Sight campaign.

The post Keeping Kids Safe at Grandma’s House appeared first on How Does She.

by Nicolette via Home And Garden