Every year, children end up injured as a direct result of taking part in Halloween activities. Halloween is one of the busiest times of the year for emergency services and startling figures on the increase of injuries treated at Hibernian Aviva Health’s Xpress Med Urgent Care Centre confirms this avoidable trend. Admissions to Xpress Med during the Halloween period increase by 50%.
Dr Richard Aboud, medical director at Hibernian Aviva Health’s Xpress Med Urgent Care Centres, said: “Hibernia Aviva Xpress Med has seen a 50% increase in easily avoidable injuries such as burn injuries and minor trauma from falls and fire-works during the Halloween break. Halloween is a fun time for adults and children alike but children are more prone to accidents when taking part in Halloween activities, taking a common sense approach to the evening will without doubt prevent the vast majority of injuries.”
Hibernian Aviva Health, as part of National Kids Health month, is calling on parents to be extra vigilant and has the following advice and simple safety precautions to help make sure Halloween is a fun time for all the family.
- Help your child pick out or make a costume that will be safe. Make sure the costume fits properly so it doesn’t drag along the ground and pay particular attention to the shoes, ill fitting shoes can easily cause a fall. Remember to leave enough room for kids to wear warm clothes under their costume as Halloween night can get very cold.
- The eye holes in masks should be large enough for good peripheral vision. This will prevent trips and falls on the road.
- Check that the material in costumes and all accessories including wigs, beards, scarves and hats are flame resistant as bonfires and fireworks are a big part of Halloween. A fire proof costume could prevent severe burns or respiratory problems should it catch fire.
- Don’t forget to put reflective tape and stickers on the costume to ensure trick-or-treaters are visible to traffic.
- If the costume has accessories such as a sword, check that there are no sharp edges and that it is smooth and flexible so it won’t cause an injury if it is fallen on.
- Avoid nasty skin irritations and rashes by spot testing facepaints and glitter before applying to the face. Always use non-toxic paints.
Not only are the tricks a cause for concern, parents should also keep an eye out for the treats too.
- Start Halloween night with a “spooky” dinner. This will help reduce the amount of sweets kids eat while trick-or-treating.
- Nuts and boiled sweets could potentially cause obstruction and choking so parents’ should check their child’s goodie bags.
Hibernian Aviva Health National Kids Health Month runs for the month of October. It is a health information campaign which aims to raise family health awareness among consumers around the country with a particular focus on safety, first aid and healthy eating.
