What are the Risks to Children in Strollers and Other Confined Areas? (Heat Related Illnesses and Injuries)

During the summer and other months in warm weather States, children are at risk for heat related illnesses including by not limited to hyperthermia. It is important that summer camps, schools, day care centers, and other child care providers understand that children respond and handle the heat much differently than adults. Furthermore, a child does not necessary verbalize or even recognize himself or herself when there is a risk of serious complications from the heat. This is especially true for infants, toddlers, and special needs children who are not communicative. According to Dr. Ross Tobleman, an emergency medical director based in Texas, “Little children can certainly get into trouble very quickly without having us recognize the signs that they’re getting trouble.” This is a reference to heat and medical complications. It should be noted that the metabolism and body of a child works much differently than that of an adult. You can read more about this topic at Heat Related Illnesses Harder to Detect in Children.

In this article, it is interesting to note that strollers and other confined spaces can present a real risk of danger, medical complication, and even death to children in the heat of summer and other months. Since children do not sweat or control body temperature the same as an adult, a glance at a child may lead a child care provider to believe that all is well because the child is not sweating profusely or appear to be that hot or overexposed to the heat. The truth is that child care provides, on many occasions, do not and cannot see that a child is truly a risk and approaching a critical overexposure to the heat. Some times, it is only the child’s outward signs of trauma, arrest, or other significant issues that finally alerts the child care provider that there is a problem.

In Florida, child care providers, summer camps, day care centers, schools and other entities have a duty to keep a child out of harm’s way. One known risk is the Florida heat. Make sure that a child - especially infants and toddlers - are provided with proper ventilation when in confined spaces like a stroller. Furthermore, as we have seen far too many times, a child should not be left unattended on a school bus or school van without air conditioning. Let’s make sure that this point is clear. A child needs to be supervised at all times and should never be left on a bus or van alone - air conditioned or without air conditioning.

The book titled - The ABCs of Child Injury - Legal Rights of the Injured Child - Legal Rights of the Injured Child - has chapters on School Injuries, Day Care Center Injuries, Theme Park and Attraction Injuries, Water Park and Swimming Injuries and other topics. You can get this book for free at The ABCs of Child Injury.