The aim of the hospital program is to help the high schoolers develop plans they can present to first and second graders in their school districts.
“As a Level I trauma center, we see so many pediatric traumas and emergency room visits which are so easily preventable with some basic safety knowledge,” said Carol Lavitt, the program coordinator. “One of the reasons this program is so effective is because six- and seven-year-old children really look up to the high school students. While mom or dad may tell the little ones to wear a helmet, they will actually listen and hear the message differently when it is coming from a ‘cool teenager.'”
This year, 22 local high schools enrolled to participate in RWJUH’s Safety Ambassador Program, a roughly 500 percent growth from when the program began with just five schools during the 2008 to 2009 school year.
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