Each year, more than 200,000 children are treated in hospital emergency rooms for playground-related injuries according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission. To keep playtime safe, Dr. Gunnar Tysklind, pediatric orthopedic surgeon, and Todd Osterbur, physician assistant, with Riley Children's Health Orthopedics & Sports Medicine offer safety tips to help prevent injuries at local community and school playgrounds.
Why is playground safety important?
Playground injuries can range from minor scrapes and bruises to more serious injuries such as dislocations and broken bones. Whether it’s a fall from the monkey bars or a tumble from a climbing wall, accidents happen during play.
“At Riley Children’s Health, we take care of a lot of elbow and wrist fractures. A surprisingly high percentage of these are from monkey bars and other forms of playground equipment,” says Dr. Gunnar Tysklind.
Playground safety tips.
Supervise children and teach them how to play safely.
- A parent or guardian should supervise children and stay alert while children play.
- Teach children to slide “feet-first” down slides and one person at a time.
- Wear proper footwear to provide stability and reduce the risk of injuries when climbing, running and jumping. “Crocs and sandals are great for the pool and other light activities, but when it’s time to play on the playground, we recommend wearing supportive, closed-toe shoes that fit well and are securely tied or fastened,” recommends Todd Osterbur.
- Remind children to sit on swings and not to cross in front of moving swings. “Not only is it important to remind children to watch where they walk around children on swings, we need to remind them that jumping off of swings can increase their risk for a serious injury,” Osterbur says.
- Children should not climb outside guardrails on climbing walls or other platforms. “Guardrails and barriers are there for a reason and should not be climbed on or messed with. Children’s limbs can also become stuck in these and twisted,” he adds.
Check for any playground hazards before playing.
- Avoid playgrounds with tripping hazards (such as rocks or tree stumps), dangerous playground equipment that is broken, or play structures without guardrails or that are not securely anchored to the ground.
- Check that swing seats are made of either plastic or rubber rather than metal (which heats up quicker and may cause burns).
- Find playgrounds with protective ground surfaces made of wood chips, mulch, sand or rubber-like materials, and avoid playgrounds over exposed concrete or blacktop.
“Unsafe playground equipment should be reported to the organization responsible for maintaining the playground, such as a parks department, school, or community organization. Please be aware of signage about damaged or unsafe equipment, and exercise caution with wet playground equipment after a rain or storm,” says Dr. Tysklind.
Don’t wait to treat playground injuries.
If your child does suffer an injury, they can receive same-day access to a highly skilled pediatric orthopedic specialist. Riley Children’s now offers walk-in care for orthopedic injuries in Fishers and Carmel. Walk-in care is available Monday through Friday, 9 am to 6 pm. No appointment or call ahead is needed. Learn more about our orthopedic walk-in care.
If your child needs emergency care, you can find Riley Children’s 24/7 emergency medicine services at one of our three Riley Children’s Health emergency medicine locations in Carmel, Fishers and downtown Indianapolis.
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