Red Cross Children’s Hospital Burns Unit urges parents to protect their children

Dr Roux Martinez - Medical officer for the Burns Unit at Red Cross Children’s Hospital joined us on the line to tell us more about the number of cases they saw over the festive season and holidays, preventative measures and cause of action following a burn. The Specialist C2 Burns Unit at Red Cross Children’s Hospital is the only specialised burns unit treating children under the age of 13 with burn injuries in the Western Cape. It’s also a referral centre for patients with severe burns from all over South Africa, due to a lack of similar facilities in South Africa and southern Africa. As the only dedicated paediatric burns specialist unit in Africa, more than 3500 children with serious burns are treated at the Hospital every year of which 85% of the patients are younger than six and 98% are from disadvantaged communities. Burn Victims face prolonged and painful treatment and in many cases are physically disabled and scarred for life. So please protect your children especially when they are small. Give them the supervision their age requires. Teach children the hazards of fires and burns and teach them to avoid foreseeable dangers.