The prevention of playground injuries

Abstract

Playground accidents are the most common cause of injury to children in school. As the health professional who attends to these injured children, school nurses should be aware of safety practices that can help eliminate the risks that children encounter. The National Program for Playground Safety has identified four areas that can reduce the level of risk on school playgrounds: supervision, age-appropriate design of the play area, fall surfaces under and around playground equipment, and equipment and surface maintenance. The article discusses each of these, and recommends leadership methods and practices that nurses can implement that will eliminate or reduce risk factors. In addition, a comprehensive playground risk model is described, and suggestions for policy areas are outlined. Policy areas include assessment, education, and enforcement in relation to each of the risk factors.