Safety and Injury Prevention: Logan Escapes Crash Unscathed
"Everyone was so caring and concerned for us."
Harmony Bass and her 10-month-old son, Logan, were recently involved in a serious motor vehicle collision. Logan was taken to the Emergency Department at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, where he received a clean bill of health. In fact, because of his properly installed child safety seat, Logan didn't suffer a single scratch. Today, he is a healthy baby who enjoys meeting people and is beginning to take his first steps.
All parents want to keep their children safe, but the trick is being prepared for every emergency. Mother Harmony Bass was prepared on a life-changing day in February 2008, when she and her 10-month-old son, Logan, were involved in a horrific car accident. Traveling north on I-471 in Northern Kentucky, Harmony knew she was about to be hit by a car coming into her lane, but she couldn't get out of the way. In a matter of seconds, her Ford Escape was hit on its passenger side, spinning the vehicle numerous times before it ultimately struck and knocked over a light pole and landed on its side in a ditch.
As the aftermath began to clear, Harmony only remembers thinking about her son Logan. "I was pretty banged up," she said, "I was in shock and had a lot of cuts and bruises, but all I could think was, 'get the baby, get the baby.'" As firefighters arrived on the scene, they immediately removed Logan's car seat from the vehicle. He and Harmony were rushed to the Emergency Department at Cincinnati Children's to make sure Logan was OK. Because he was in a properly installed child safety seat, Logan came out of the accident perfectly unharmed.
Stephanie Spanos, MD, remembers the day Logan and his mom were brought to the ER. "When I met Logan, he was happy, smiling and playful, still sitting in his car seat on top of a trauma bay bed. You never would have known he was in an accident if it weren't for his parents, who were quite worried," she said. "He didn't have a scratch on him."
"Everyone was so caring and concerned for us," Harmony said. "The doctors at Cincinnati Children's took good care of us. They were all wonderful." Logan had touched Dr. Spanos so much that she called the family the next day. "I thought it was so nice that Dr. Spanos would call to see how we were doing," she said. "It really showed she cared."
The Scary Truth
It's not uncommon for children to be involved in car accidents. Logan was one of the lucky ones. Car accidents are the leading cause of death for kids over age 2 in America. According to Safe Kids, an organization dedicated to preventing accidental injury among children, more than 1,400 children 14-years-old and under died in 2005, as a result of motor vehicle accidents in the United States. Being properly restrained in a child safety seat lowers a child's risk of fatal injury by 80 percent.
Child safety seats can save lives — that is, if they're used correctly. Studies have found that as many as 95 percent of child safety seats are installed incorrectly. The manuals for the seats can be cumbersome, and a lot can go wrong during installation. That is why parents can get their child's safety seats installed by experts for free at locations like Cincinnati Children's and fire stations.
"Logan is our poster child for properly installed car seats."
Harmony had her firefighter-friend check Logan's child safety seat, and she was grateful she had put it in the middle of the back seat. "We were lucky he was there," she said. "I would not only recommend having the seat checked to any parent, but also installing it in the middle of the back seat if possible, because you never know what side you might get hit on."
Dr. Spanos knows first hand how important and easy it is to make sure a child safety seat is installed correctly. "It is the simplest and most essential thing a parent can do to protect their child," Dr. Spanos said. "Even though we can drive safely, we cannot guarantee that those around us are driving safely."
The results of not following the latest child safety seat recommendations can be terrifying. "I have seen numerous head injuries, broken bones, lots of blood and even death," Dr. Spanos explained. "It's devastating to families, paramedics, police and the hospital staff. It's especially horrifying, knowing that such a simple step could have prevented these injuries. Logan is our poster child for properly installed car seats."
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