The issue of parents leaving children in cars is an increasingly large concern during the summer months, because it can cause children to suffer heatstroke and death. A study from the Center for Injury Research and Prevention, Childrens Hospital of Philadelphia evaluated the effectiveness of different products on the market aimed at helping parents remember children in vehicles.
The goal of the study was to evaluate existing technology for sale that would reduce the likelihood of infant children up to 24 months of age being inadvertently left behind in cars, trucks and vans. Using a variety of indicators the study concluded that existing devices were unreliable and inconsistent in their ability to identify instances when children were left behind in motor vehicles.
The study evaluated how the devices performed based on the location of the child in the vehicle, the childs posture and the amount of movement impacted the accuracy of the products. None of the products were able to consistently and reliably note when a child was left in the vehicle.
The various products used pressure sensors, auditory cues and wrist band alert systems to keep track of children. Unfortunately, none of the products reliably or consistently notified parents that the children were still in the car.
What is clear is that there are few, if any reliable products on the market. As such, as summer sets into high gear, parents and child care providers must be especially vigilant in transporting children.
At Greg Coleman Law, our personal injury attorneys are especially concerned about all of the other ways, apart from car accidents, that vehicles can cause harm and grave injury. For information about the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration summer campaign to prevent heatstroke in children left in vehicles, consult the article on their website.
