Backseat reminder hang tags help prevent hot car deaths
BATON ROUGE - There are a lot of distractions in our daily lives and no parent thinks it will happen to them. Still, hot car deaths happen every year as temperatures rise. It's why Woman's Hospital is offering a free reminder hang tag, to check the backseat before you lock your car.
Angela Hammett, a prenatal education coordinator at Woman's Hospital says leaving your child in a hot car is preventable.
"Awareness is the key and prevention is the key," said Hammett.
According to Kids and Cars, a child advocacy group, a major factor leading to hot car deaths is a change in routine. It can be as simple as stopping off at the grocery store, or a parent changes daycare drop-off schedules instead of going straight to work. It only takes a few minutes for a child's body temperature to spike.
It's why a baby-nurse at Woman's Hospital thought up the idea to design a visual reminder. The hang tags are bright pink and hang on the rear-view mirror. It alerts the driver of the car to check behind them before exiting.
"It's not meant to take the place of anything, it's just meant to create more awareness to check your backseat," said Hammett.
Parents are also encouraged to leave a material item in the backseat, so you'll check before you leave the car.
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"Some of the other things you can do is leave your purse or your laptop bag some even say leave your left shoe in the backseat," said Hammett.
The hang tags are available at Woman's Hospital at 100 Woman's way off of Airline Highway or Woman's Center for Wellness at 9637 Jefferson Highway. They can also be downloaded and printed at home.