NORWAY – The Child Health Center, in collaboration with the Maine Coalition for Safe Kids, sponsored a child passenger safety certification training at the Peru Fire Department recently.

Ten area technicians including police officers from Rumford and Auburn, nurses at Rumford Hospital and Central Maine Medical Center, an EMT from Med-Care Ambulance, a community volunteer from Community Concepts Chisholm Head Start and staff from Advocates for Children and the Maine Coalition for Safe Kids, are now certified in child passenger safety.

Suzanne Cook, program coordinator for the Child Health Center’s ProtectME program, was the lead instructor for the four-day training, which included three days of instruction and a final day of written testing and onsite safety seat inspections.

Child passenger safety technicians are trained in the proper use of car seats and familiar with the different vehicle safety systems available. These technicians will become an important part of their communities offering free child safety seat inspections upon request. It has been shown that at least 90 percent of the safety seats in Maine are incorrect, placing the child at risk in the event of a crash. Safety seat inspections correct these errors and guide parents and caregivers on the proper use of car seats in their vehicles.

Cook, who conducts monthly child passenger safety seat inspections in Auburn, South Paris and Rumford, states, “Many people assume they are using their car seats correctly and do not realize the risks they are taking by not having their seats checked to be sure. Parents who have had their seats checked tell us how surprised they were to learn what they didn’t know and what they were doing wrong.”

The Child Health Center coordinates three area free Child Passenger Safety Fitting Stations in Auburn, South Paris and Rumford. Parents and caregivers are invited to contact the Child HealthCenter in Auburn at 782-5437 for more information and to schedule an appointment at their local fitting station.

The Child Health Center is a nonprofit organization with offices in Auburn, Norway and Rumford. For more information, call 782-5437 or visit www.childhealthcenter.org.