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Kokua Line
June Watanabe
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Being firm will help keep tot in car seat
Question: It would be nice if parents could take their child to a police officer who could enforce the seat belt laws for children. I am sure some parents are having a hard time enforcing the laws to the toddlers who won't let us buckle them in. Sometimes when I am driving they will undo the buckles. We need help. Do you know where or how we could do this?
Answer: You can get help from a less threatening source, although many police officers are involved in educational activities explaining child safety seat laws.
Parents can make an appointment to learn how to utilize child car seats properly, for free, at any one of several "fitting stations" statewide sponsored by the Keiki Injury Prevention Coalition.
Parents are also welcome "to call us with questions like this," said Nola Faria, a clinical coordinator at Kapiolani Medical Center for Women and Children, who runs the car seat program at the hospital's fitting station.
At Kapiolani, the number to call with questions is 983-8159.
To have a car seat checked by a trained technician, call Kapiolani Health Connection at 535-7000. Kapiolani Medical Center takes appointments every Wednesday from 1:30 to 3 p.m., Faria said.
"It takes approximately (a) half-hour per car seat and we check that the seat fits their child (and) the car and is installed and being used appropriately," Faria said.
There are several inspection stations on Oahu and throughout the state. For more information, call the Keiki Injury Prevention Coalition at 537-9200, or visit its Web site, kipchawaii.org (click on the events calendar, then on the safety stations.)
In the meantime, Faria did provide some tips that might help you.
For children at the toddler stage, "you really can't reason (with them) or give lengthy explanations to them," she said.
This is where parenting skills come in, she said.
"Basically, just tell them that 'You can't drive in the car with me unless you buckle up, like Mommy or Daddy. Mommy wants you to be safe and we're not going until you buckle up,' period." End of discussion.
Faria also reminds parents to think of the comfort of their toddler.
"If you're dragging them around shopping all day, how would you feel?" she said. "Are they tired and that's why they're fighting? Maybe you need to take a break and let them rest."
Another thing that's worked for some parents is, if there is a CD player in the vehicle, to bring a favorite CD, or a toy.
"You want to make it fun traveling with your children," Faria said.
"For the most part, (the solution) is just using good parenting skills and being firm and not caving in," she said. For hyperactive children, "that's a different situation and there are suggestions for parents who have true hyperactive children who can get out of their car seats."
In that case, she suggests going to one of the fitting stations to seek advice, or talk to your doctor about what your options might be.
For older children, say 4 or 5 years or older, "you can reason with them a little bit more. You can say, 'It is the law and Mommy does not want to get a ticket. The policeman is our friend, but I don't want him to get angry and give a ticket,' " Faria said. "That might be a better way."
She added, "I know parents want to say, 'You better stay in your car seat or the policeman's going to get you.' " Police officers and nurses "get this all the time. Parents will say you better do this or the policeman's going to arrest you or the nurse is going to give you a shot. But children need to learn that police officers are their friend. You want them to go to police officers if they have a problem."
For the most part, Faria said, parents who don't have problems have children who are used to being buckled in.
"Children learn by example," she said. "If they see adults in the car not buckled in, then they see an inconsistency. I would say consistency and being good role models and trying to be really positive" are the keys to handling the situation.
Mahalo
About 4 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 12, my car ran out of gas just when I was going through the Wilson Tunnels, Honolulu-bound. In the midst of calling my family for help, a Sheriff's Department vehicle stopped in front of me. The gentlemen came out of their car, asked if I needed help, then proceeded to push my car with their car. They were so quick and the timing could not have been better! Much mahalo to these wonderful angels who helped me out of harm's way! May God bless the both of you! -- D. Freitas
Got a question or complaint? Call 529-4773, fax 529-4750, or write to Kokua Line, Honolulu Star-Bulletin, 500 Ala Moana Blvd., No. 7-210, Honolulu 96813. As many as possible will be answered. E-mail to
kokualine@starbulletin.com.
See also: Useful phone numbers