The Portland Police Bureau, in partnership with OHSU Doernbecher Hospital, have created a public service video regarding child safety seats. Oregon law requires children to be in child safety seats until they weigh 40 pounds, or they reach the upper weight limit for the car seat in use; infants must ride rear-facing until they reach two years of age. Children over forty pounds or who have reached the upper weight limit for their forward-facing car seat must use a child seat with harness or a booster to 4'9" tall or age eight and the adult belt fits correctly.
The video focuses on practical information for deciding when a child is ready to progress to the next stage of a child safety seat. Infants begin with a rear facing seat with harness and when appropriate, transition to a forward facing seat with a harness. The next stage is a belt-positioning booster seat and then finally a regular seatbelt. Most kids are not ready to fit into most seatbelts in most cars until somewhere between 8 and 12 years of age.
In the video, Sgt. Betsy Hornstein discusses the importance of the appropriate seat for older children with Dr. Ben Hoffman, Professor of Pediatrics in the OHSU School of Medicine, OHSU Doernbecher Children's Hospital, and President of the American Academy of Pediatrics (who is also a Certified Child Passenger Safety Technician).
“We want to keep children safe in vehicles, but our traffic officers often find that children are not in the most appropriate safety seat for their height, weight and age,” said Sgt. Hornstein. “Parents focus so much attention on that first newborn seat and we commend their efforts to ensure it is properly fitted into their vehicle. However, there needs to be more information for parents to know when children should transition into a different seat.”
“The best way to protect children in cars is to use the right car seat or booster seat for the child’s age, weight and height, and developmental status,” said Dr. Hoffman. “We know that car seats can be confusing and hard to use, and that’s why Doernbecher has certified Child Passenger Safety Technicians to help families use the right seat correctly. It’s important for families to make sure that their car seat or booster seat meets current U.S. safety standards. Sadly, we are seeing more dangerous counterfeit car seats being bought online. These counterfeit seats can’t protect kids in a crash, and so we encourage caregivers to only purchase certified car seats from a reputable online or brick-and-mortar retailer.”
Dr. Hoffman says that though Oregon law requires children to remain in rear-facing car seats until the age of two, it's much safer for them to remain in the rear-facing seat as long as possible. If a child is in a forward-facing car seat with a harness it's important to keep them in that as long as possible until the manufacturer's weight and/or length limits are exceeded by the child. When they get close to exceeding the weight or length limit then they can transition into the belt positioning booster seat.”
Dr. Hoffman illustrates in the video how to tell if your child is ready to transition to a booster seat. They must be able to sit comfortably with the seat belt fit across their shoulder/chest and over their lap without fidgeting or moving or unbuckling the seatbelt. Belt positioning booster seats lift the child up and ensure that the seat belt fits correctly in the same way that your seat belt would fit a teenager or adult. The shoulder belt should fit across the strong parts of the shoulder and the breastbone the lap belt should be over the top part of the legs and the bottom of the hips. Finally, experts want to remind parents that the backseat of the car is the safest place for kids until at least the age of 13.
To make sure your child is safe, get your car seat checked. You can contact OHSU Doernbecher to schedule an appointment or find an event near you. Call the Doernbecher Tom Sargent Safety Center at 503-418-5666.
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