Ford's See Me Safe child safety program contains important lessons for kids…and parents. The national child passenger safety program recently took a ride to Atlanta to spread the word about the importance of properly using child safety seats.

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of death among children in the United States. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), only half of booster-age children (ages 4-7) were restrained correctly in booster seats. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says using booster seats can reduce the risk of injury by 59 percent compared to seat belts alone. Studies show that most children are transitioned too early into a standard seat belt before they reach the correct height - 4’9” tall.

“Installation of a child safety seat can be a challenge for many families when they have to rely on written materials from the safety seat and automobile manufacturers. Often times, families may not realize if the seat is improperly installed,” said Julia Jones, vice president of operations, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta at Hughes Spalding. “We hope to enhance car safety for kids through further educating parents, health care providers and booster seat age children on the proper installation of booster seats.”

See Me Safe stresses the importance of using child passenger safety seats. In Atlanta, See Me Safe conducted a community safety check-up and a workshop for health care providers. Second and third grade classes from Bethune Elementary School participated in KidsBoost for Safety to encourage the use of booster seats. KidsBoost for Safety uses activity books, crayons and stickers to promote booster seat safety. Children also participated in a drawing contest, competing for a bicycle, helmet and pizza party for their classmates. As part of See Me Safe, Ford donated 200 child and booster seats to families in need.

See Me Safe teams up with certified technicians to provide hands-on instruction on how to install car seats. Families learn to properly secure the seat in a vehicle and to match the correct age, weight and height requirements for each type of seat. Health care providers also learned about child passenger safety at the See Me Safe Prescription for Safety education workshop.

Ford Motor Company Fund and Meharry Medical College from Nashville collaborated with Children’s at Hughes Spalding and the Injury Free Coalition for Kids to bring See Me Safe to Atlanta.

Launched in 2007, See Me Safe has distributed more than 1,700 car seats in eight cities and reached more than 400 health care providers through its Prescription for Safety workshop.