Parents are to be warned of the dangers facing young children from everyday items including dishwasher tablets and hair straighteners at the next Hey Baby Carousel.
Midwives and child birth educators at Hull Women and Children’s Hospital are working with Hull City Council’s Accident Prevention Team to outline the risks household objects pose to children.
More than 16,000 under-fives were taken to Hull Royal’s Emergency Department following an accident in 2017/18, an increase on 11,095 the previous year.
Childbirth educator Melanie Lee said: “Before your baby arrives, you have to look at your home with fresh eyes to see potential dangers.
“Going around your home on your hands and knees can give you a different perspective and help you see things which are in a child’s eye line.
“However, we want to show people how washing dishes or clothes, having a hot cup of coffee or straightening your hair can cause severe injuries and even death to their child.”
Hey Baby Carousel takes place on the last Wednesday of every month and is now held at the Clinical Skills Building in Fountain Street, near Hull Royal Infirmary.
Pregnant women, partners and grandparents are all welcome to attend the next event on Wednesday, February 27, between 6pm and 8pm.
You can speak to midwives about your options for giving birth, speak to staff at the Fatima Allam Birth Centre and use the award-winning Virtual Reality headsets to immerse yourself in a range of experiences from using the pool in the birth centre to using a birthing ball on the labour ward.
Along with the accident prevention stall, midwives, birth educators and childcare experts will be on hand to offer advice, tips and guidance to parents for every stage of their pregnancy and parenthood.
There will also be practical demonstrations of how to change a nappy, how to bathe your infant in those early weeks and how to fit a car seat correctly.
There’s no need to make an appointment – just turn up.
