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189
Accidents in the home are therefore a particular hazard to
children and to old people. Prevention has a very personal aspect
—parents need to teach to the young the dangers of fires and naked
lights, and the risk of eating tablets or drinking liquids they may
find lying about. Parents should beware of inflammable clothing
material, fires unprotected by fireguards, and medicines and disinfectants
left lying within easy reach of the young.
Those who work for the cause of home safety, know well that
accidents are CAUSED and can, therefore, be prevented. Study
of many cases has proved that "accidents" are not "bolts from the
blue" or sudden acts of unkind fate, but a chain of events, starting
from a cause and leading to a result, and a tragic result which could
have been prevented by action somewhere along the line.
The aspirin bottle "could" have been put away after its last
use, the mat "could" have a a non-slip backing, the handle of the
saucepan "could" have been turned away from the front of the
cooker. If these simple acts had been carried out a small child
could have been saved a trip to hospital, an old person could have
avoided a fall, and a scalding accident need not have happened.
These simple truths "must" be put across to those who have
not yet taken them in. The Press, radio and television play their
part in reaching the public, with help and advice on the causes and
prevention of accidents. Health & Welfare and Home Safety Committees,
Health Visitors and Nurses, Teachers and Voluntary
Workers all play their part, but the accident rate remains still too
high. "I didn't know" or "I never realised" continues to be the
cry of a victim of an unnecessary home accident.
Local Campaigns
National figures reveal that 12,000 children each year were the
victims of accidental poisoning in the home. In 1966, 29 children
died from poisoning in this manner and the main causes were a
failure of parents to lock up drugs or to store toxic household
substance} out of the reach of children.
In an effort to tiy to reduce these appalling figures the Home
Safety Conmittees within the Borough submitted proposals to the
West Kent Branch of the Pharmaceutical Society, asking for
approval, that a poster be displayed in the chemist establishment,
to notify members of the public, that all unwanted drugs, medicines,
etc., could be returned to the chemist for disposal.
This approval has been granted, and full publicity is being
given on this matter at Schools, Clinics, Old People's Clubs,
General Practitioners' Surgeries, Libraries, etc., throughout the
Borough.