A home with no young children in it is set up for grown-ups. Kidsafe says it is likely to have many hazards within easy reach.1 A few changes before they come make it safe for little visitors.
Most child poisonings that end in hospital are medicines.2 Kidsafe names one time when medicines are easiest to reach: when grandparents who take medicine every day come to visit.2 The same goes when the children visit you.
A handbag is a magnet for small hands, and it often holds medicines or lighters.1 In a Queensland poisons study, 12 toddlers got medicine out of a bag. For 8 of them, what they swallowed was potentially toxic.4
Do this: pick one high spot, a hook or a top shelf, for every bag in the house, yours and visitors'.
A weekly pill box makes tablets easy to take. It also makes them easy to grab. Queensland injury researchers found Webster packs and pill containers "too pose a risk". In their series, 5 toddlers took tablets from one; all 5 had swallowed psychoactive medicines and all 5 were sent for medical care.4
Do this: the pill box lives in the locked box too, not on the bench or the bedside table.
"Child resistant" is not child proof; many children can open those lids.1 Keep medicines apart from cleaners, both in a high, lockable cupboard. Medicines that live in the fridge go in a small lockable container.2
Do this: one lockable box for every tablet, cream, drop and vitamin. Take old medicines back to the pharmacy.2
Young children like to copy what adults do, and that includes taking tablets.2
Do this: take your medicines when the children can't see. Never call medicines "lollies".2
Many safety rules apply to things built or fitted after a set date. A pool, blind or hot water system that was fine when it went in may not meet today's standard. Here is what to check.
Rules depend on when the pool went in. In WA, a pool built before 5 November 2001 may open straight from the house, as long as doors and gates self-close and self-latch and windows into the pool area are secured. Newer pools must be fully fenced off from the house.5
Four-sided fencing is twice as effective as three-sided, where the house wall is one side.6 In Queensland home-pool drownings of children under 5 (2005–2015), the most common way in was a gate propped open (28%).6
Do this: check the gate shuts and latches by itself from any angle. Nothing leaning on the fence. Keep house doors to the pool shut and locked.
The rules for how blinds are fitted started on 1 January 2015. Blinds put up before then may have long loose loops.3
Do this: wind every cord on a cleat at least 1600 mm above the floor, so no loose loop is 220 mm or longer.3 Move cots and beds away from windows.1
Kidsafe advises safety glass or security film in high-risk spots like doors and low windows, if it is not already there. Falls and trips near glass can be serious.1
Do this: not sure what glass you have? Ask a glazier, or fit safety film.
In Victoria, hot water systems put in before 5 August 1998 likely deliver water hotter than 50°C.7 Scalds cause 52% of child burns, and the typical child burned is 3.8
Do this: ask a licensed plumber to set bathroom water to a maximum of 50°C.1 Run the cold first and turn it off last.
Old dressers, bookcases and TVs on low cabinets can tip when a child climbs them. Toppling furniture has killed 20 Australian children under 7 since 2000.9
Do this: strap tall furniture and the TV to the wall.1
Children have been hurt being lifted up into a ceiling fan.1 Stairs without gates, and railings with footholds, are common in homes set up for adults.
Do this: fan off before you lift a child. Gates at the top and bottom of stairs.1
Parents and grandparents both want the same thing: a visit that is fun and safe. A short talk beforehand covers most of it.
Kidsafe's tip: crawl through each room on your hands and knees and see what a child sees.1
Do this: check bedrooms and bathrooms for medicines in reach.1
Kidsafe warns that parents often don't know there is a pool, spa, pond or dam where their child is visiting.1
Do this: tell them what water you have. Empty buckets and paddling pools. Stay within arm's reach when a child is in or near water.1
For a sleepover, NSW's children's hospitals suggest parents see where their child will stay and ask how many adults will supervise and what safety measures are in place.10
For a baby, Red Nose has advice written for grandparents: on their back, head and face uncovered, in a safe cot, night and day. Its advice line is 1300 998 698.11
Do this: cot or bed away from windows and blind cords.1 Top bunks are not for children under 9.1 Show the parents the room.
Never leave a child alone in the bath; take them with you if you must leave the room. About 38°C is right for young children.1 Keep young children away from the dog, especially at feeding time.1
Do this: set up a play spot away from the dog before they arrive.1
Child Safety at Home
Australian home-injury and child-harm data, made clear so it can be prevented.