Who should read this chapter? Parents who allow their children, themselves or other passengers to ride in a car without a car seat or seat belts. Learn why this is really a bad idea no matter what your reason for not using these safety devices is.
Summary: There is no excuse for not using car seats and seat belts. These clearly save many lives and prevent many serious injuries. By making the use of passenger restraints routine, using them will no longer seem like an inconvenience. Even if your child cries in a car seat, keep him/her in the car seat. The crying will stop once a child understands that riding in the car seat is the only way to ride and crying or tantrums will not change this.
There is no question that car seats and seat belts save lives and prevent serious injuries. The law in most states require car seats and seat belts. In my 14 years of staffing a children's hospital emergency room, it is rare to encounter a seriously injured child who was properly restrained in a car seat. In motor vehicle crashes, most serious injuries occur when an adult or child is thrown from the car or is tossed about inside the crashing car. Car seats and seat belts restrain passengers within the car to prevent being thrown from the car and being tossed within the car. While this is not a guarantee to be free from injury, passenger restraints substantially reduce the risk for serious injury.
Because it is well known that passenger restraints are beneficial, it is unfortunate that many automobile passengers do not take advantage of passenger restraints. It is foolish to not use the advantage that car seats and seat belts provide us. The consequence of not using these is the potential for preventable injury and death in a loved one. Some experts believe that permitting children to ride in a car without a car seat should be considered child abuse. The definition of child abuse includes child neglect where parents place their children at unnecessary risk by not taking measures that are recommended by medical professionals. This DOES fit the definition of child abuse.
What are the excuses for not placing children in car seats? Most parents give two reasons: 1) Inconvenience, and 2) My child doesn't like staying in the car seat.
Car seats and seat belts are inconvenient? Locking the door when you leave your home or car is also inconvenient. But we do it because the benefit of doing it is substantial. Brushing your teeth is inconvenient, but we do that too, despite the inconvenience. Similarly, bathing, flushing the toilet, putting the toilet seat down, washing the clothes, house cleaning, lawn mowing and washing the car are all inconvenient. Once we get in the habit of doing things routinely, it no longer becomes inconvenient. For those of you who do not use car seats and seat belts, you will find that if you do this routinely, it will no longer seem inconvenient. If your child becomes seriously injured in a car accident, you will never forgive yourself for not properly restraining your child to prevent the injury. Inconvenience is not a good enough reason to not use car seats and seat belts.
My child doesn't like staying in the car seat. Who's the boss here? Parents should be in charge. This excuse is just not good enough. When put in a car seat, some children will cry or throw a tantrum. You should do the exact opposite of what they want. They must remain in the car seat. Let them cry and throw a tantrum all they want. The good thing about a car seat is that they will remain secure in the car seat even while they cry and throw a tantrum. You must not give in. Eventually the crying and tantrums will stop when the child realizes that the crying and tantrum results in no change in parental behavior. No matter how much they scream and cry, they must learn that they will still have to remain in the car seat. Children should learn that when parents decide that something is to be done, their crying and tantrums will have no potential to change this decision.
Children should be taught that the car doesn't move until everyone is secured in a car seat or by a seat belt. I think it is disappointing to find that many parents do not care about their children enough to protect them in a car seat. Even if you believe that you are a perfect driver, you cannot control who else is on the road with you. Another driver could unpredictably cross the center line, colliding head-on into you. Such crashes cannot be predicted or prevented by you. To minimize the injury risk for your children and family, everyone should ALWAYS be secured in a car seat or by a seat belt.
My children are so well convinced that car seats and seat belts are the right thing to do, they will often take the initiative and tell other adults to put on their seat belts. I took my children to a restaurant and picked up my in-laws on the way down. When my in-laws got into our van, they didn't put on their seat belts. As we began to drive, my daughter told them to put on their seat belts. Grandpa told them, "Grandpa is too old to need a seat belt." My daughter corrected him and told him that everyone has to wear their seat belt. Needless to say, I was very proud of her, especially since I was not about to tell my in-laws to put on their seat belts.
My 5 year old son injured his thigh in an accident. I felt he was probably OK, but he kept complaining of pain in his thigh and thus, I thought his femur (thigh bone) might be broken (a serious fracture). I put him in our van to take him to the hospital. I didn't want to move his leg so I told him to lie down on the center bench seat with his leg straight. As I was reversing the car out of the garage, he told me that he had to get up to put on his seat belt. Despite the pain in this thigh and my insistence that he lie down, he insisted on getting up to put his seat belt on. He recovered nicely from this injury.
Consistent and proper training when they are young, leads to good decision making by your children for years to come.