Riding On Festive Mood To Get Children To Play Safely

 
Jingle bells, jingle bells, jingle all the way, oh what fun, it is to play, safely all the way, hey!

2 Through this new take on the popular Christmas song and several other initiatives, the Health Promotion Board is aiming to reach out to parents and caregivers this December, to remind them to encourage their children to play safely, whether in the home or outside. And, for the first time, HPB is pulling in new partners like National Parks Board (NParks) and SAFRA Jurong, while continuing to work with existing ones like KK Women s and Children Hospital (KKH) to spread these childhood injury prevention messages.

3 The safety messages are being disseminated in the following innovative ways:

A Christmas-themed art installation (Annex A) will be erected at SAFRA Jurong (at the parents corner of the popular Kids Amaze , one of the largest indoor playgrounds in Singapore) and KKH s Children s Tower.
Forty-five eye-catching Play It Safe lamp post signs highlighting playground safety tips (Annex B), will be put up near NParks playgrounds at Jurong Central Park, Pasir Ris Park, and West Coast Park. NParks will also be putting up HPB posters on playground safety at its other playgrounds islandwide.
Besides Jingle Bells, popular nursery rhyme tunes have been used to create radio messages in Malay, Chinese and Tamil, to channel parents to HPB Online www.hpb.gov.sg/chipp for tips on preventing childhood injuries.
 
4 Ms V Prema, Deputy Director, Youth Health Programme Development 2, Youth Health Division, Health Promotion Board said, The holidays are a time when children tend to play more, whether at home or at the playground, and it would be a pity if the fun is ruined because of an accident that could have been easily prevented. So, we want to encourage simple safety practices so that families can have a fun, festive season minus injuries.

5 Over 10,000 children attend the Children s Emergency of KKH every year after sustaining unintentional injuries. Majority of these injuries are preventable. Much can be done to educate care-givers of children and the children themselves regarding injury prevention, and we are glad to be involved in this effort by HPB, said Dr Tham Lai Peng, Senior Consultant, Emergency Medicine, KK Women s and Children s Hospital.

6 Mr Bernard Lim, Assistant Director, Coastal Parks, NParks, said, We are pleased to partner HPB in this meaningful initiative for the festive season. Our aim is to provide a favourite spot for everyone in our parks, and children are one of our key audiences. Ensuring that they can play safely in our parks will enhance their enjoyment of our facilities. The signboards are an attractive and innovative way to convey the safety messages.

7 Mr Tommy Ang, Club Manager of SAFRA Jurong, commented: We are happy to partner the Health Promotion Board to spread the messages of childhood injury prevention. Having the art installation at SAFRA Jurong will be beneficial to the many families and young children playing at our Kidz Amaze playground during school holidays, reminding both parents and caregivers that they play an important role in encouraging their children to play safely.

8 The month-long campaign will also include print and radio advertisements to encourage parents and caregivers to see the world through the eyes of their children. This will help them be more aware of the dangers that children may be exposed to, especially in the home setting where most injuries in children below the age of five occur. An English version of the jingle can be found at Annex C.

9 Besides tips on how to keep children safe, parents can also download activity sheets from www.hpb.gov.sg/chipp to help them teach their children safety through interactive game

Background Information on CHIPPS. Click here.