Manning awarded for Safe Kids program

Martin County parents and their children may be more knowledgeable today when it comes to preventable injury awareness than parents were in 2013.

That’s the year Safe Kids Riverbend (SKR) began.

In those years, the organization has made noticeable strides in educating parents, children and citizens on the hazards of preventable injuries.

Martin County Deputy Health Director Vickey Manning was presented the Safe Kids Coordinator of the Year Award last week in Raleigh for her dedication and leadership of SKR.

The local SKR Coalition is comprised of citizens from Martin, Tyrrell and Washington counties and numerous agencies throughout those counties.

For the past 11 years, SKR has been under Safe Kids Worldwide and Manning has been the coordinator since the local coalition’s inception.

“Being named 2023 Safe Kids Coordinator of the Year, is not about me. It is about the wonderful coalition members that recognize the importance of keeping the children in Martin, Tyrrell and Washington Counties safe,” Manning said. “Through collaborative partnerships, we seek to share safety tips with parents and caretakers as a way to protect our most precious resources, our children.”

Safe Kids Worldwide is a nonprofit organization focused on reducing unintentional injuries to children 14 years old and younger while building equitable and sustained systems that support injury prevention. Preventable injuries are the number one cause of death to children in the United States according to the organization’s statistics.

The abundance of water bordering the SKR counties highlights the importance of SKR’s water safety programs for Manning.

“We distribute water safety tip sheets at many of our group session events. This is an area that needs more focus, especially being that all three of our counties are bordered by large bodies of water. I learned about a life jacket loaner program while at the Safe Kids NC Conference and am hoping to find out more info and share it with the Coalition,” said Manning.

Crib deaths and safe sleep is one of the organization’s most important initiatives and is top of mind for Manning.

“This is an area that, unfortunately, has needed a lot more attention over the last several years, especially in our health district. Babies, especially under 12 months of age, should be A. Alone in their sleep space, B. placed on their back and C. placed in a crib,” Manning said. “Through grants and generous donations from such entities as the Williamston Rotary Club, we have been able to purchase pack and plays for families that do not have a safe sleep space for their babies.

“Social Worker and Nurse Care Managers as well as Health Educators at the health department assist Safe Kids Riverbend Coalition in providing Safe Sleep education to families of young babies,” Manning added. “Such education includes not only the ABCs stated above, but also stresses that alone means no blankets, pillows, toys or bumper pads in the crib as these items can impact an infant’s ability to breathe if they become wedged against the item. MTW Health Department has recently been awarded a Reducing Infant Mortality in Communities grant which is focusing on safe sleep and breastfeeding support.”

Other important areas SKR highlights are poison prevention. Permanent boxes are located in each county. Martin County has its box located at the Martin County Sheriff’s Office, where residents can dispose of pills, prescriptions and other controlled substances,

Bike and pedestrian safety, motor vehicle safety and fire prevention are other areas of concern that SKR addresses.

“Being a part of Safe Kids Riverbend Coalition gives me the opportunity to work closely with other community agencies that believe that we need to work together to share knowledge and resources with families. I am very honored and humbled to receive this award,” said Manning.