WASHINGTON, Dec. 13, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- More than 60,000 young children end up in emergency rooms every year after getting into medicine while their parents or caregivers were not looking. To remind parents and caregivers about the importance of safe medicine storage, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA) Educational Foundation, in partnership with the PROTECT Initiative, today launched the Up and Away and Out of Sight educational program.
In recent years, the number of accidental overdoses in children increased by 20 percent. Up and Away and Out of Sight aims to educate parents and caregivers about how they can prevent accidental overdoses. The program reminds them to store medicines safely; providing them with information and tools to keep their child/children safe; and encouraging them to take action.
"We know that, unfortunately, many children have to visit the emergency room because of accidental medication exposures," said Dr. Dan Budnitz, director of CDC's Medication Safety Program in the Division of Healthcare Quality Promotion. "To help combat these preventable harms, the Up and Away and Out of Sight program gives parents and caregivers the information they need to store medicine safely and protect children."
With cough and cold season now here, it is more important than ever for families to be reminded to always store medicine safely and securely in their homes. The average child will have six to eight colds a year, while the average adult will get two to four colds a year.
In addition, with the holiday season upon us, many families will be traveling and hosting visitors in their homes. As a result, medicines belonging to friends and family members may be left in places accessible to children. This campaign asks consumer