Programs

Research and Presentations


The Injury Free Coalition for Kids (IFCK)—Baltimore formed under the direction of Dr. Charles N. Paidas, Director of the Pediatric Trauma Program in 2002, when we became the 27th local Injury Free site. Working closely with the Manager of the Pediatric Trauma Program, Susan Ziegfeld, MSN, PNP-BC, they hired Ben Selassie, LCSW, MPH as the PC. They invited Dr. Andrea Gielen and Ms. Eileen McDonald from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health’s Center for Injury Research and Policy to add their pediatric injury prevention expertise to the team. Gielen and McDonald had recently established the first U.S.-based safety resource center, the Johns Hopkins Children’s Safety Center, and were conducting a randomized control trial to evaluate it. The signature program of IFCK—Baltimore in its early years was the establishment of a Parent Safety Leadership Group . IFCK—Baltimore joined with other local community groups to lead several focus groups to clarify needs. We gathered input from community residents on injuries to children in their neighborhoods and solicited from parents their interest in working with us. We developed a curriculum and trained a set of parents and neighbors in East Baltimore to improve community safety. The Parent Safety Leadership Group then assisted with training other parents and caregivers in various injury prevention topics, such as smoke alarm installation, poison prevention, CPR, and First Aid. The aim of the program was to train parents, residents, neighbors, and caregivers to become safety leaders and advocates for safety in their communities. Baby Safety Showers were another signature IFCK—Baltimore program. These showers provided education and safety supplies to teen moms in the community.



In 2015, IFCK—Baltimore leadership transitioned from the Pediatric Trauma Program to the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, with Eileen M. McDonald serving as PI. We created an administrative structure to support our efforts, the Johns Hopkins Child Injury Prevention Network (JHCIPN). JHCIPN is a collaborative group of faculty and staff from the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy (Center) at the Bloomberg School of Public Health, the Department of Pediatrics, the Pediatric Emergency Department, and the Pediatric Trauma and Burn Program at the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center (JHCC). Our tripartite mission is to:


Together and separately, members of CIPN have continued to conduct research trials on various injury topics, both in primary prevention of injuries and in the treatment of injuries and burns. We continue to turn research studies into community service projects, and we dedicate resources to providing injury prevention education and services through numerous community service projects, many of which involved medical, nursing and public health students and staff to help attract new professionals to the field of injury control. A sample of recent research projects and educational and service programs is listed above.






Baltimore Directors


Contact Info

Eileen M. McDonald
emcdona1@jh.edu

Mapping address: 624 N. Broadway, Baltimore, MD



Description

The Between Riding and Driving Program educates youth about factors which increase their risk of injury or death when they ride in motor vehicles. The program educates youth (10 – 15-year olds) about Maryland laws on restraint use, cell phones/distracted driving, alcohol use, and graduated licensing. The IPT partnered with the Maryland Institute for Emergency Medical Services Systems’ occupant safety coordinator to educate preteens attending summer camps throughout the Baltimore region. Pre and post tests are used to evaluate growth in knowledge and assess changes in planned behavior.
In recognition of April's National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, Hopkins Adult and Pediatric Trauma Centers, hold a Distracted Driving Prevention Awareness Seminar and Health Fair. Distracted driving continues to be a dangerous, escalating problem on Maryland’s roadways. The event features information on distracted driving crash data, evidence-based prevention programs, policy implementation and successes. The event takes place within common areas of the hospital and is open to all. In recent years, the event has expanded to include information on additional road safety hazards such as impaired and drowsy driving, proper use of child restraint systems and pedestrian safety. Organizations and companies such as the Maryland Department of Transportation and AT&T have been great partners and continue to support this event each year. Attendees test AT&T’s “It Can Wait” campaign also provides a distracted driving virtual reality experience for attendees and serves as a great teaching tool.


Contact Information



Description

The Johns Hopkins Injury Prevention Teams hosts biannual Car Seat Inspections open to the community, patients and families. Car seat technicians are on hand to check for recalls, ensure car seats are optimal for the child’s age and body size and check harness fit and proper installation. The IP Coordinator collaborates with the Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, Kids in Safety Seats Program, to ensure senior checkers are on hand to confirm installation met state standards.

Contact Information



Description

Child passenger safety services are a mainstay of our program. The Children’s Safety Center (CSC) not only provided child passenger services to the Johns Hopkins patient community but also to the general public. At one time, child passenger safety services were available Monday through Friday during regular business hours, and every other Saturday. Families accessed the services by being referred by their healthcare provider, scheduling an appointment themselves, or dropping into the safety center. More recently, the IPT has become the primary providers of child passenger safety services. For hospital patients, our IPT Child Passenger Safety Technicians are available to provide car seat demonstrations and assist with on-site installations prior to discharge. We have also supported the training of physical therapists and occupational therapists to expand the reach of this service. A Special Needs Loaner Program is available for children requiring special needs devices for safe transport. Finally, IPT conducts biannual Car Seat Inspections open to the community, patients and families in partnership with the Maryland Department of Health. Families access services by contacting the IPT to make appointments. Technicians are available at each event and assist 15-20 families during a 3-hour period. Between 2017-2019, 62 car seats were distributed to low income families that attended an inspection.

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Description

In recognition of April's National Distracted Driving Awareness Month, Hopkins Adult and Pediatric Trauma Centers, hold a Distracted Driving Prevention Awareness Seminar and Health Fair. Distracted driving continues to be a dangerous, escalating problem on Maryland’s roadways. The event features information on distracted driving crash data, evidence-based prevention programs, policy implementation and successes. The event takes place within common areas of the hospital and is open to all. In recent years, the event has expanded to include information on additional road safety hazards such as impaired and drowsy driving, proper use of child restraint systems and pedestrian safety. Organizations and companies such as the Maryland Department of Transportation and AT&T have been great partners and continue to support this event each year. Attendees test AT&T’s “It Can Wait” campaign also provides a distracted driving virtual reality experience for attendees and serves as a great teaching tool.

Contact Information



Description

In-patient Injury Prevention Consult Program is implemented by the Injury Prevention Team (IPT), dedicated injury prevention specialist from the Pediatric Trauma Service who provide health education and counseling to Children’s Center patients who present with a high injury risk as identified by a member of the clinical team. Safety topics include home safety, fire safety, water safety, car seat safety, falls prevention and more. In addition, the IPT implements age-appropriate safety activities and games with patients on the units to increase safety knowledge and safe behaviors. On occasion, the IPT leads interactive safety demonstrations in the waiting rooms of the ED and Outpatient clinics.

Contact Information



Description

PENDING

Contact Information

Eileen M. McDonald
emcona1@jhu.edu
(410) 614-0225

Amanda Davani
adavani2@jhu.edu



Description

The Johns Hopkins Mobile Safety Center is a 40-foot mobile injury prevention resource center that travels throughout Baltimore City educating children, adults and older adults about household and road traffic safety. Visit our website for more details.

Contact Information



Description

The Pediatric Trauma Service runs a monthly trauma research meeting to disseminate research findings and to explore and promote collaborations across the Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions on a wide array of pediatric trauma care, injury prevention and other pediatric issues.

The Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy has an extensive portfolio of research covering all phases of injury prevention and on a variety of injury topics affecting populations across the lifespan. Replication guides, policy documents, research tools and other resources are available in our Resource Library with targeted for policymakers and practitioners and for the general public. Visit our website at www.jhsph.edu/InjuryCenter.

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Description

Safety in SecondsTM is a smartphone app developed and tested through an NIH-funded randomized controlled trial (A. Gielen, PI). The app we developed is theory informed and walks users through a series of questions to assess both child passenger safety and home fire safety; educational messages are evidence-based and connect users to local resources. We tested the app by enrolling families seeking care in pediatric emergency departments in Little Rock, AK and Baltimore, MD. Results demonstrated the app’s utility in improving parent’s child passenger safety and fire safety knowledge and behaviors. Committed to broader dissemination of the tool, we partnered with a foundation to make the app available for both Apple and Android phones free of charge. Dissemination activities of both the research results and free resource include presentations at national and international pediatric, communication and injury control professional conferences and journal articles about the creation and evaluation of the Safety in SecondsTM program including one in Health Education Research (2015), A smart phone app to communicate child passenger safety: An application of theory to practice, and one in Injury Prevention (2017), Evaluating a smartphone application to improve child passenger safety and fire safety knowledge and behavior.



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Description

The Johns Hopkins Children’s Safety Center is the longest running safety resource center in the United States, established in 1997. Visit our website for more details.

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Description

Snow Injury Tip Sheet

The recommendation from Johns Hopkins Hospital, the level 1 trauma center for the state of Maryland Play but play safely!

- According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission in the year 2000, thousands of injuries were treated in hospitals, doctors' offices, ambulatory surgery centers, clinics and costs billions of dollars in medical bills and lost income.

- As a trauma center, we care for the most severe kids, and many of the children we have treated have had major head injuries – ranging from skull fractures to brain bleeds. Esp. true for our older kids!

- Approximately 40 injuries seen by JHH trauma service over the last 5 years

- Sledding may cause head injuries in young children, while older children and adults have more extremity injuries. Other injuries can include contusions, abrasions and abdominal injuries, musculoskelatal injuries

- Parental supervision is key.

Be Smart!

- Warm up properly – spend a few minutes stretching your hamstrings, thigh muscles, hips and calves before and after any strenuous activity

- Make sure your child's clothes stay dry. If they become wet, change your child into a dry clothes.

- Wear adequate clothing, preferably in layers. Don’t forget good quality sunglasses, goggles and sunscreen.

- Recognize when you need a rest

- Never consume alcohol or other mood altering drugs

- Never, ever, play on the back of a moving vehicle

Know your equipment!

- Wear a protective helmet. While some may consider them “uncool” there is nothing cool about sustaining a head injury. Ideally, any helmet should comply with one of the American standards (Snell RS98 or ASTM F2040) or the European standard EN1077. This indicates that it has passed certain standards

- Have your own equipment checked regularly

- Longer skis are more difficult to turn and bindings set too high for your ability are more likely to cause injury

- Boots should fit snugly without your ankle moving around inside

- Follow manufacturer guidelines regarding the number of people on a sled

Know your abilities!

- Don’t be tempted to skip professional instruction - injuries are common in beginners

- Ski or snowboard with a friend (Always stay in sight of each other in case of an emergency. The ideal number of people to ski with is three, one to stay with the injured person and one to go for help)

- If you are tired, rest (most injuries occur towards the end of the day)

- Know your limitations. Match the difficulty of the run to your abilities

- Children can lose control of their sleds and hit a tree or another object, or even another child. After falling off of a sled, additional injuries can occur when a child's body suddenly hits the snow.

Know your environment! - Sledding on or into the roadway should be prohibited. Look for shallow slopes that are free of obstacles such as trees and fences, many children sled into street and get hit by a car

- Be aware of snow conditions. Get the weather report

- Sled in designated areas that are free from trees and other immobile objects

- Avoid sledding on icy surfaces.

- Never sleigh near or in crowded areas, children often cannot steer the sled.

Contact Information



Description

PI, A. Gielen

Infant safe sleep was the focus of a recently completed NIH-funded randomized controlled trial. The overall goal of the trial was to test the impact of a health educator-delivered intervention and receipt of safe sleep products on low-income urban parents’ infant sleep behaviors. Our results indicate that the intervention was effective in promoting safer sleep behaviors, so we are continuing this service through the Children’s Safety Center. Numerous presentations were made at professional conferences and, to date, three articles have been published, with more in the works: 2019 Injury Prevention, Health education intervention promoting infant safe sleep in pediatric primary care: Randomized controlled trial; 2019 Academic Pediatrics, Content of infant safe sleep counseling and maternal reported practices in an urban clinic; and 2019 JAMA Pediatrics, Disclosure of infant unsafe sleep practices by African American mothers in primary care settings.

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Description

PI, I. Nasir

This Pediatric Trauma Service (PTS)-based research project is evaluating the long-term impact of a bicycle safety education and bike helmet distribution program that is free of charge, delivered within an urban hospital, with specific attention to changes in youths’ bicycle safety knowledge, attitudes about bicycle safety, and helmet wearing behaviors. Health educators trained nursing staff and hospital volunteers on proper helmet fit, rules of the road, and bike safety. Staff and volunteers work with patients ages of 5 to 15 years old who indicate they’ve ridden a bike in the past six months. Helmets are given to those who do not have one, and all receive training about safe bicycle riding practices. Families complete a brief survey to provide feedback on the program and insight for future safety education initiatives. Publications pending completion of study.

Contact Information



Description

PI, L. Ryan

The overall goal of the project was to create and pilot test a culturally relevant video that promotes bicycle helmet use for children and adolescents in Baltimore City that can be implemented in the primary care setting. The video, You Make the Call: Bike Helmet Safety, was developed with creative input from patients at the Harriet Lane Clinic and students from two different schools in Baltimore City. The Thomas Wilson Foundation provided support for the project. The video won “best in show” at Safety 2018, an international injury conference. In addition to presentations about our work at national research conferences including Injury Free, Pediatric Academic Societies and SAVIR, two articles have been produced: Promoting bike helmet safety for urban children through a culturally tailored educational video intervention (2019, Health Promotion Practice), and Evaluation of a culturally tailored educational video intervention to promote bike helmet safety for urban children: a pilot study (in press, Health Promotion Practice).

Contact Information



New Program

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Contact information:

Eileen M. McDonald, MS

Photograph of Eileen

Job Title:
Senior Scientist and Director, Johns Hopkins Children's Safety Centers

Biography:
Eileen M. McDonald is senior scientist in the Department of Health, Behavior and Society at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she directs the master’s program in health education and health communication. She is core faculty of the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy and serves as their Associate Director for Translation. Her injury research focuses on the application of innovative health education methods, health communication technology, and other clinical- and community-based interventions aimed at reducing pediatric injuries. Eileen co-created Safety in Seconds, a free smartphone app that focuses on child passenger safety and residential fire safety. She and Johns Hopkins colleagues have conducted numerous RCT and national surveys on topics from opioid storage and use practices to fire and life safety topics. Ms. McDonald holds a bachelor’s degree in health education and a master’s degree in health administration. Eileen is the PI for the Injury Free Coalitions for Kids-Baltimore, where she spearheaded the award-wining bike helmet video, You Make the Call.

Contact Information

Email Address:
emcdona1@jhu.edu

Phone Number:
(410) 614-0225`

Mailing Address:
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
624 N. Broadway, Room 731
Baltimore, MD 21205


Debra Skultety - Robinson

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Job Title:
Manager, Pediatric Burn & Trauma Program

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Creason Walter, BS, CHES, CPST

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Job Title:
Injury Prevention Program Coordinator, Pediatric Burn & Trauma Program

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Contact Information

Email Address:
cschafe6@jhmi.edu

Phone Number:
4109559382

Mailing Address:
1800 Orleans Street
Suite 7350
Baltimore, MD 21287


Isam Nasr, MD

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Job Title:
Director, Pediatric Trauma Program

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Justine Gately

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Job Title:
Injury Prevention Program Coordinator, Pediatric Burn & Trauma Program

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Contact Information

Email Address:
jgately4@jh.edu

Phone Number:
443-287-3485

Mailing Address:
1800 Orleans Street
Suite 7350
Baltimore, MD 21287


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