Nation's first children's hospital-based safety store focuses on child injury prevention
The Riley Safety Store at Riley Hospital for Children, the first of its kind in the nation, serves as a model for children's hospitals across the nation. Recently expanded, the Riley Safety Store provides space to showcase safety products for children and families, as well as offer different "zones" that simulate home settings and provide families with the opportunity to practice installation and use of child safety products prior to purchase.
The Riley Safety Store serves all children, including children with disabilities or special health care needs, and offers access to a broad inventory of low-cost or free child safety products and injury prevention education.
The Riley Safety Store is a blueprint for children's hospitals nationwide, with 11 children's hospitals having been trained to launch Safety Stores in the last two years by Riley Hospital's Safety Store Team in partnership with the National Association of Children's Hospitals and Related Institutions. Hospitals which received training are:
- The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (Philadelphia, PA)
- Rainbow Babies and Children's Hospital (Cleveland, OH)
- Texas Children's Hospital (Houston, TX)
- Children's Hospital of Michigan (Detroit, MI)
- St. Louis Children's Hospital (St. Louis, MO)
- Rady Children's Hospital (San Diego, CA)
- A.I. duPont Children's Hospital (Wilmington, DE)
- University of Iowa Children's Hospital (Iowa City, IA)
- Legacy Emanuel Children's Hospital (Portland, OR)
- Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt (Nashville, TN)
- Children's Hospital of Orange County (Orange, CA)
Since opening in 2005, the Riley Safety Store has served over 8,100 families who have purchased safety products and/or received free products through the Riley Safety Store's pioneering program, Safe Escape. Annually, the Riley Safety Store receives over 10,000 visitors.
Currently, there are eight Riley Safety Stores in Indiana: Riley Hospital for Children, Indianapolis; Children's Museum of Indianapolis; Decatur County Memorial Hospital, Greensburg; Morgan Hospital and Medical Center, Martinsville; Tipton Hospital, Tipton; Schneck Medical Center, Seymour; Howard Regional Health System, Kokomo; and Clarian West, Avon.
"Our expanded and newly renovated Safety Store further demonstrates Riley Hospital's commitment to innovation, leadership and our community by making safety affordable and accessible to all children and families, especially in these difficult economic times," said Cara Fast, MSW, Riley Safety Store manager. "We want families to keep safety top-of-mind and the Riley Safety Store is one way we can help accomplish that goal."
Source: Indiana University