A Public Health Perspective on Consumer Product Safety Andrea Gielen, ScD, ScM Professor and Director Shannon Frattaroli, PhD, MPH Assistant Professor Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy Baltimore, Maryland March 2, 2011

Topics Burden of injury and public health approaches to prevention Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy Consumer-product related research of the Center Opportunities to enhance consumer product safety through partnerships

5 Million Deaths due to Injury As much as malaria, TB, and HIV combined

Globally, injury is among top 5 leading causes of death for children (5-14 years) 25% of child deaths in Low and Middle Income Countries due to road traffic injury and drowning 58% of child deaths in High Income Countries due to road traffic injury, drowning, interpersonal violence and suicide

Every year in the U.S., consumer products result in ……. 9,000 fires, 520 deaths, 1,040 injuries, and $242M property losses due to upholstered furniture fires 228,200 injuries treated in emergency departments due to toys 184 deaths due to unintentional non-fire CO poisonings U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

Injury Prevention and Control Injury PreventionInjury Treatment Pre-eventEventAcute CareRehabilitation Preventing injury causing events Preventing injury or minimizing severity of injury Minimizing severity of outcome Restoring optimum functioning Reducing the Burden of Injury:Advancing Prevention and Treatment Richard J. Bonnie, Carolyn E. Fulco, Catharyn T. Liverman, Editors; Committee on Injury Prevention and Control, Institute of Medicine, 1999

40-50,000 bicycle injuries/year deaths 2/3rds die from head injury Helmets provide a 63-88% reduction in the risk of head, brain and severe brain injury 20-25% bicyclists wear helmets Community based education with free helmets Enforced helmet legislation Address needs of low income communities

Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy Oldest and largest injury research center 1 of 11 centers for excellence in injury research in the U.S. 42 multidisciplinary faculty Public health approach Commitment to impacting practice Making Discoveries that Make a Difference

Closing the Gap between Research and Practice to Reduce the Burden of Injury conduct high quality research vital to developing, implementing, evaluating, and sustaining policies and programs that improve the prevention and treatment of injuries assure that this research is translated into practice and integrated into the education of injury professionals

Educating Injury Professionals 150 students per year 10 injury courses Summer Institute Engineering student project

Engineering Students New safer boating helmet Patent approved 15,000 sold in one year

Translating Research into Practice Bike helmets reduce the risk of serious head injury by ~85% Infant car seats reduce the risk of death by ~74% Smoke alarms reduce the risk of death by ~50% The challenge is how to get such life saving information and safety products to those who need it

Free personalized education Reduced cost safety supplies Children’s Safety Center

Evaluation More safety products used in the home Hospital service program for more than 10 years Model being used in other children’s hospitals

Research Vulnerable populations –Low income, urban families –Youth and older adults –Ethnic minorities –Trauma survivors Consumer products – Motor vehicles – Alcohol-related – Fire-related products – Children’s products

Recommended for ages 3 and up

Fire Sprinkler Systems Reduce risk of death in a home fire by 82% when used with smoke alarms Reduce fire damage by 97% Reduce water usage by 90% Reduce environmental water pollution Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition, FM Global

Utah Safety Council

Consumer Product Safety Commission, NEISS 2007: 150,900 injuries 40,000 under age deaths, 1/5 children

Partnership

Thank You!