Children's Hospital Boston  300 Longwood Avenue
Boston, MA 02115
(617) 355-6000
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Clinical Services (Injury Prevention Program):
Community Initiatives
Children's Hospital Boston administers and supports a number of community initiatives designed to prevent childhood injury. We are actively involved in the following programs and organizations:
Car and Bicycle Safety
Income eligible families who receive care at Children's Hospital Boston's Primary Care Center can receive an automobile infant seat, toddler seat or booster seat as needed. To ensure that the seats are used properly, we require families to undergo a one-hour training session before receiving a seat.

The Injury Prevention Program provides free helmets to more than 2,000 Massachusetts children each year through the Children's Primary Care Center, Martha Eliot Health Center and other neighborhood health centers. We also participate in community events, during which we raffle off helmets and help families learn how to properly fit their child's helmet.

ThinkFirst
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ThinkFirst Boston provides three age specific programs to increase the awareness and knowledge among children so an effective foundation for prevention can be established and later reinforced.

ThinkFirst for Kids: designed to enhance student's interest in learning by using four interactive components: 1) a brain and spinal cord injury prevention curriculum, 2) an animated cartoon, 3), a set of five comic sheets (one per safety topic), and 4) a set of five full -color classroom posters that reinforce messages presented during classroom instruction.

Think First for Youth: comprised of formal curricula - one for fourth through sixth grades and the other for seventh and eight grades. Each curriculum is built upon the same six modules featured in the Think First for Kids.

ThinkFirst for Teens : focuses on decision-making skills and aims to empower teens and young adults by providing life-saving information.

Our goals for these programs are to reduce the number of children who sustain brain and spinal cord injuries later in life, positively alter individuals' attitudes about prevention, and encourage young people at high risk for sustaining traumatic brain and spinal cord injuries to "ThinkFirst" before engaging in risky behavior. Since 2004, over twenty-five hundred children, teenagers and allied health professionals have attended ThinkFirst Boston injury prevention programs.

ThinkFirst Boston is a school-based program offered by Children's Hospital Boston free of charge to schools in Boston and surrounding neighborhoods. The program is intended to teach first through third graders about preventing injuries to their brains and spinal cords.

This is part of a national effort, which was so successful in California that it was adopted as part of the school curriculum and is a required course for all elementary school children.

Contact Michelle Parker at 617-355-2281 to learn how Children's can bring ThinkFirst Boston to your school.

Injury Free Coalition for Kids
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The Injury Free Coalition for Kids is a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-supported program. Children's Injury Prevention Program staff have established a community coalition in Jamaica Plain to prevent childhood injuries in that neighborhood. Projects include car seat education and distribution, bicycle helmet distribution, education for families on home safety, and community events. The program addresses community-identified needs and is critically evaluated.

Contact Taranjeev Walia at 617-355-2792 for more information, or to join the coalition. Injury Free Coalition

Greater Boston SAFE KIDS Coalition
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The Greater Boston SAFE KIDS Coalition is a Boston-area chapter of the national SAFE KIDS Campaign, an organization dedicated to the prevention of unintentional injuries.
SAFE KIDS
SAFE (Seatbelts are for Everyone) Coalition
Buckling up is a simple step to saving lives and the enormous costs (physical, emotional and financial) associated with motor vehicle-related injuries. The Children's Trauma Program is actively involved in the SAFE Coalition's lobbying and public education campaigns. Learn more about SAFE (Seatbelts are for Everyone) Coalition.
Safer Homes
Our Safer Homes program trains home visitors to complete home safety assessments and provide families with information on how to proactively prevent possible injuries in the home. Families also receive home safety materials.
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