Baby Your Baby- 'Spot the Tot' Before Driving to Keep Kids Safe
Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital is urging motorists to “Spot the Tot” to prevent accidental injuries this summer.
Spot the Tot is a Primary Children’s injury prevention program that has been adopted by child safety advocates around the world. It’s also part of Intermountain’s Primary Promise to create the nation’s model health system for children.
Spot the Tot is designed to prevent motorists from accidentally rolling over a child as they pull away from a curb or driveway because they simply cannot see them.
“While backovers and frontovers may seem rare, they happen regularly and can result in devastating injuries or death,” said Karlee Kump, community health program manager at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital.
In the past decade, more than 60 Utah children have been killed and more than 500 have been injured by accidental backovers and frontovers.
Nationwide, more than 1,500 children have died in such accidents between 1990-2021, according to KidsandCars.org. The organization notes that the number of fatalities is likely undercounted, because there is no official state data collection system.
Many of these accidents take place in spring and summer when children are more likely to be playing outside and are difficult to see if they’re within 16 feet of a vehicle’s bumper.
While many vehicles are equipped with detection devices like backup cameras or warning sounds, these devices have blind spots as well. Nothing can replace drivers walking around the vehicle to make sure children are safely out of the way, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports.
“These accidents can happen to anyone,” Kump said. “They’re also preventable by taking a few extra seconds to practice safety before getting into the vehicle.”
Primary Children’s offers the following tips to Spot the Tot:
- Walk all the way around the car before you get in to ensure children are not behind you.
- Turn off distractions, including your mobile phone and music.
- Roll down the windows and listen for children.
- Ask an adult to stay with kids while you exit a driveway to improve safety.
More information is available at primarychildrens.org/safety.
