This July 7, 2025, Child Safety Link will join injury prevention organizations across Canada to mark the 9th annual National Injury Prevention Day (NIPD)—a day to raise awareness around the fundamental importance of injury prevention, and to help Canadians live long lives through education and advocacy. Landmarks across the country will be lighting up green that day in honour of NIPD—including Halifax’s City Hall and Province House!
When we, our friends, or family are injured, it often becomes the central focus in our lives. Each year, many thousands of Canadians suffer life-altering injuries that lead to long-term disability, chronic pain, or death. Beyond those directly affected, families, caregivers, and communities also experience emotional, social, and financial stress.
Indeed, the numbers are staggering: Every year, injuries are the leading cause of death for Atlantic Canadians aged 1 to 44. Preventable injuries also cost Atlantic Canada’s economy $1.8 billion in a single year, including $1.3 in direct health care costs. We know that injuries kill more children than all other causes combined.
These figures illustrate why we started Child Safety Link (CSL)—a program of IWK Health dedicated preventing injuries in the first place. We are not here to prevent the bumps and bruises of everyday life – in fact, those are important for a child’s learning and development. Our goal is to help reduce the incidence and severity of the serious, life-changing injuries.
CSL is committed to working with community organizations, governments and other partners to ensure children are as safe as necessary at home, at play, at school, and on the road. The team does this through capacity building and partnerships; communication and public relations; advocacy and healthy public policy; and research and evaluation.
CSL is pleased to offer the following:
- A wide library of educational resources for both families and service providers (fact sheets, videos, infographics, etc.) on a range of injury prevention topics, in a growing selection of diverse languages
- Consultations and tools for those who work with families (e.g. law enforcement, hospitals, health practitioners, family resource centres)
- An online community called The Link that is a hub for child injury prevention tools and resources. The Link is as a promotional platform for trainings and events, a networking tool to connect across sectors, and ultimately a place for interested parties to gather. This community is different from our website and social media pages as it is specifically designed for the professionals and other service providers who support families and are passionate about children’s injury prevention. To register for The Link: https://child-safety-link.mobilize.io/registrations/groups/68089
- Please link here for a comprehensive list of CSL’s services: https://www.childsafetylink.ca/about-us/csl-services
If you work with families and are looking for information on child and youth injury prevention, please drop us a line at childsafetylink@iwk.nshealth.ca, connect with us on our website at www.childsafetylink.ca, see our videos on our YouTube channel or follow us on Facebook , Instagram and LinkedIn (@childsafetylink), and join our Community of Practice (see link above).
Remember, most injuries are predictable and preventative. We need your help in spreading our messages on how to keep our children safe and prevent serious injuries on the road, at home and at play. The team at Child Safety Link looks forward to hearing from you, and continuing to strive towards our collective goal of healthy children.
For more information about NIPD, visit https://parachute.ca/en/program/national-injury-prevention-day/