Updated BC Injury Prevention Resource

The goal of the updated BC Injury Prevention Directory is to serve as a reference and to assist individuals interested in linking and collaborating with other injury prevention stakeholders.  This edition provides a brief description of injury-prevention initiatives in BC and outlines the organizations responsible for those initiatives.

In BC, the primary causes of injury-related hospitalization for children are:  falls; transport-related injuries; and unintentional poisoning.

Along with information on Health Canada and MCFD, BC Association of Family Resource Programs, First Call and Westcoast Child Care Resource Centre, and various region-specific programs, the Directory lists a number of child-related initiatives.

Examples include:

1. BCAA which has a mandate to provide child seat installation inspection services, as well as up-to-date information about child seat safety to the public and interested groups.
2. BC Children’s Hospital (BCCH) Prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome BC which has two websites: Don't Shake (for professionals) and Purple Crying (for parents).
3. BC Dental Association (BCDA) which has tips for parents/caregivers for children’s oral health.
4. BC Injury Research & Prevention Unit (BCIRPU) which provides education and knowledge transfer along with public information.
5. Canadian Hospitals Injury Reporting and Prevention Program (CHIRPP) has a mandate to collect information on what types of injuries occur, as well as how, when, where & why they happen.  It also monitors trends and patterns of injury; identifies existing and emerging hazards; facilitates research into the causes and consequences of injury; identifies and targets groups at increased risk of incurring injury; and provides a national database (and regional databases) for the analysis and dissemination of the collected injury data.
6. Canadian Institute of Child Health (CICH).  As well as the injury statistic publication, The Health of Canada’s Children: A CICH Profile, 3^rd edition, CICH produces Fact Sheets available online, CICH’s target audience includes children and families as well as professionals.
7. Canadian Parks & Recreation Association (CPRA).  The Everybody Gets to Play™ and the Everybody Gets to Play™ Inuit, Metis & Aboriginal initiative is a multi-year national initiative to enhance the quality of life of Canadian children in low-income families through increased access to and participation in recreation opportunities.
8. Canadian Red Cross RespectED: Violence and Abuse Prevention initiative has a declared purpose to break the cycle of abuse, neglect, harassment and interpersonal violence through prevention education. Prevention in Motion explores child abuse, neglect, bullying and harassment prevention and the response role required of concerned adults and organizations.  Workshops address risk management for individuals and organizations, policies and procedures, and comprehensive prevention planning.  Preventing Violence Against Children and Youth is a facilitator training on child abuse prevention programming.  Upon completion, educators can deliver Prevention in Motion, Be Safe, and It’s Not Your Fault workshops.  Walking the Prevention Circle works with Aboriginal people or those involved with First Nations communities to explore issues relating to abuse, neglect and interpersonal violence.  Educational programs are available across BC.  Be Safe kit can be purchased through the Red Cross Contact Centre (email:  wz-contactcentre@redcross.ca).
9. Child Health BC offers the Too Hot for Tots! (THFT) Program to educate caregivers in order to reduce the number of preventable burn injuries that often happen to young children in the home.  The program is aimed mostly at health care educators, however, parents can visit the For Parents page on the website for helpful hints on preventing childhood burn injuries. This page offers an Adjusting Your Home Hot Water Temperature video and the downloadable Too Hot for Tots! Brochure (which is available translated into Simplified and Traditional Chinese, French, Punjabi, Spanish and Vietnamese).  The hard copy of this brochure contains a multi-use hot water temperature testing card so that parents and caregivers can test the temperature of their home hot water tank.
10. Infant Development Programs of BC serves children 0-3 who are at risk for, or who already have, a delay in development.
11. Parent Support Services Society of BC offers free Parent Support Circles for parents feeling overwhelmed by parenting and other life events.  Grandparents Raising Grandchildren offers self-help support for grandparents with full-time responsibility for raising their grandchildren aged 0-12 years.
12. Safe Start produces and updates safety information resources in conjunction with Safe Kids Canada.

Click here to access the BC Injury Prevention Directory.