Program takes aim at bicycle injuries
Elementary school children in Bismarck, ND, are less likely to come into the emergency room with head injuries, thanks to a program sponsored by Medcenter One’s rehabilitation department.
This year, the hospital gave away 500 helmets to children in six city schools, according to Leon Keller, vice president for rehabilitation services.
Medcenter One bought the helmets. Therapists at the hospital’s 24-bed rehab unit donated their time to size and fit them.
"Our aim is to have all the kids in that part of the city wearing helmets. We want the kids to think it’s cool to wear helmets and that if you don’t wear one, you’re an outcast," Keller explains.
The hospital has been giving away bike helmets to one school at a time for several years, but this is the first time it has attempted a program of such magnitude, Keller says.
"It’s part of our program to prevent head injuries. If a kids wears a helmet, his chances are less of having a head injury," he says.
The hospital also sponsored the Great American Bike Race for Cerebral Palsy, a stationary bike race at a local mall that raised $10,000 to help defer the costs to families with children with cerebral palsy.
"It’s all part of our effort the help the community," Keller says.
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