Today is National Burns Awareness Day, the annual campaign organised by The Children’s Burns Trust. The focus of this year’s campaign is the devastating link between children living in the most deprived areas of England and Wales and those who are admitted to a specialist burns unit following a burn or scald injury. Children living in the top areas of social deprivation are 6.7 times more likely to be burned or scalded than those living elsewhere in the country.
Figures show that once again, in 2021 we are seeing trends around the alarmingly high number of burn injuries to babies and toddlers, as well as surprising causations and a clear pattern in relation to social deprivation.
Laura Farley, parent of Arthur who was burned by a hot drink when he was just 2 years, 9 months old says:
“Following Arthur’s accident, I’m determined to raise awareness of the dangers of hot drinks around children and how these devastating injuries can happen in seconds. We’re hoping that showing the pictures of this distressing injury to Arthur means that more parents/carers are aware of the dangers of hot drinks around children. Even if one family doesn’t have to go through what we went through it will be worth it.”
Hundreds of NHS Services, Fire and Rescue Services, along with other organisations, come together each year on National Burn Awareness Day to raise awareness of the alarming number of people burned each and every day in the UK – the vast majority of which are preventable.
The campaign also helps to promote the vital message of the importance of good first aid if a burn or scald does occur: COOL for 20 minutes under cool running water, CALL 999 OR 111 or your GP for advice, COVER the burn loosely with cling film.
www.cbtrust.org.uk