The use of safety belts in motor vehicles is without doubt responsible for saving the lives of countless South Africans every year.
Those planning to travel by roads over the upcoming holiday period should therefore always make a point of wearing a seatbelt, urges emergency medical services provider Netcare 911.
“A number of studies have shown that, in the case of a vehicle accident, injuries are prevented and lives saved when adults and children are properly restrained,” asserts Shalen Ramduth, Netcare 911 general manager of national operations. “Despite this, all too many South Africans continue to drive without wearing seatbelts, and, perhaps of still greater concern, many fail to ensure that their children are safely buckled up.”
Seatbelts save lives
Ramduth explains that the principle behind the use of car safety belts for adults and safety seats for children comes down to basic physics: a vehicle that moves forward at a constant speed and then comes to a dead stop, will result in any unfastened objects being propelled forward with enormous force and at the same speed that the vehicle had been moving.
“Fitted safety belts and child restraints absorb the energy caused by a rapid deceleration, which usually occurs during a motor vehicle accident, and also considerably reduces the risk of occupants being ejected from the vehicle,” he adds.
René Grobler, who heads up Netcare Milpark Hospital’s Netcare Trauma Injury Prevention (TIP) programme, an awareness and educational project aimed at reducing the incidence of traumatic injuries among South Africans, agrees that seatbelts can afford a significant measure of protection to the occupants of a vehicle during an accident. She is particularly concerned about the fact that so many South African drivers do not consider the safety of children while driving.
Protecting children
“Tragically, every year we see a number of small children who have been seriously injured in vehicle accidents at Netcare’s emergency departments around the country. Many parents do not properly restrain their children, or allow them to sit in the front seat using adult seatbelts or to play in the back of the car without any restraints whatsoever.
“It should be kept in mind that children and babies are much more vulnerable to injury than adults, and adult seatbelts often do not adequately restrain them during an accident. Youngsters need to be strapped in using properly designed child safety seats that are secured in the rear of the car. These seats are highly effective in preventing injury and should be used every time someone travels with a child in a vehicle,” adds Grobler.
“The benefits of properly strapping in children are clear. Rear-facing child seats have been shown to reduce injury by as much as 76 per cent and severe injury by 92 per cent. Forward-facing restraints are less effective but still reduce injury by 34 per cent and severe injury by 60 per cent.”
Child safety tips
One of the aims of the Netcare Trauma Injury Prevention programme is to reach and educate as many parents and guardians as possible about the benefits of using restraints, according to Grobler.
The programme offers the following additional vehicle safety tips to parents and child minders:
- Use your car safety seat from the very first day you travel with your newborn baby, i.e. on your way home from the hospital.
- The safest place for your child in a vehicle is on the back seat in a correctly fitted safety seat. A child should only be allowed to sit in the front seat once she is taller than 150 centimetres, can place her feet comfortably on the ground and weighs more than 45 kilogram.
- A rear-facing child restraint system provides the best protection for infants until they are around 12 months old. Keep them in this type of car seat for as long as possible and only start using a forward facing child seat when they no longer fit in the rear facing-type seat, or until they reach the maximum height or weight limit allowed by your car seat’s manufacturer.
