Mayo Clinic Will Provide Free Car Seat Inspections Sept. 12

Thursday, August 29, 2002

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Mayo Clinic and Southeastern Minnesota EMS will provide free car seat safety inspections by appointment only for the Albert Lea community on Thursday, Sept. 12, from 4 to 6 p.m. Inspections will be held at the Freeborn County Fairgrounds 4-H Building in Albert Lea, Minn. People coming for the car seat inspections should enter through the main gate off of Bridge Street, going to the first tan building, which is the 4-H Building. To schedule an appointment, call Sharon Munns, Mayo Clinic emergency services outreach coordinator at 507-255-5066.

"Studies indicate more than 85 percent of children are improperly restrained in their car seats or booster seats. Our goal is to prevent injuries to children by educating parents about child-passenger safety," says Munns. During the inspection, Mayo Clinic staff will thoroughly evaluate each car seat to ensure it is installed properly and meets safety recommendations. Children must be present for accurate inspection of the child restraint. General passenger safety tips for children include:

* All children age 12 and under should ride in the back seat.

* Never use a rear-facing car seat in the front seat of a vehicle with an active air bag.

* All infants should be in rear-facing car seats until they are at least 20 pounds and 1-year old.

* All children need to be in a car seat or booster seat until they are at least 4 feet 9 inches tall or weigh a minimum of 80 pounds.

* Be sure to send in your car-seat registration card so you can be notified in case your car seat should be recalled or included under other warnings.

* Always replace any car seat that has been involved in a crash.

When properly installed, child safety seats reduce the number of fatal injuries by 71 percent for infants and 54 percent for toddlers. However, motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death for children ages 4 to 14.

"Many families stop using car seats too soon. It's very important to use a car seat and later a booster seat that is appropriate for your child's height and weight," says Dawn Nelson, pediatric critical care outreach coordinator at Mayo Eugenio Litta Children's Hospital.

For more information about car seat inspections, call 507-255-5066.

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Contact:
Glenn Lyden
507-261-1860 (days)
507-284-2511 (evenings)
email: newsbureau@mayo.edu

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