Protecting children when they ride in motor vehicles is the responsibility of all community members. Nationally, we have done a good job of getting our very young children (from birth through age 3) into child safety seats; however, too many children who are 4 to 8 years of age are still riding unrestrained. Although any type of occupant restraint use is better than riding unprotected, research has shown that the safest way for 4- to 8-year-old children to ride is in a booster seat. (Fifth Report to Congress, Third Report to the President, NHTSA/DOT, March 2003) During Fiscal Year 2001, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) funded pilot and demonstration projects to implement community-based strategies to increase booster seat use for children weighing between 40 and 80 pounds. These projects examined factors and activities that influence booster seat use. They all involved community-wide campaigns enhanced by a variety of more targeted activities, such as the development of classroom materials for elementary school children and outreach to pediatricians. Project overviews highlighting key project elements, qualitative research findings to consider, and programmatic findings and lessons learned are presented throughout the guide. This how-to guide, synthesizing the research findings and lessons learned from the demonstration projects, is for all child passenger safety (CPS) and injury control advocates. Resources and other best practices information from CPS and other occupant protection programs round out the guide to provide a broad view and context for the promotion of booster seats. Use this information to: * Determine how to initiate the promotion of booster seats in your State or community; * Examine factors that can influence the success of your booster seat promotional and outreach efforts; * Decide how to best use available resources to promote booster seat use; * Monitor and evaluate the success of your efforts. (Author/publisher)
Samenvatting