Iowa Hospital Opens Lobby Safety Store, Includes Injury-Prevention Education

Iowa Hospital Opens Lobby Safety Store, Includes Injury-Prevention Education

At the Stead Family Children’s Hospital, they know that safety starts with injury prevention. In order to help new parents accomplish their safety goals, they have opened a safety store that has injury-prevention experts staffed to help parents find the right solution for their family.

  • By Kaitlyn DeHaven
  • July 23, 2019

Iowa’s Stead Family Children’s Hospital recently opened the first children’s hospital safety store in Iowa, but this store goes past only selling products at a low price.

The Stead Family Children’s Hospital’s Safety Store offers a wide variety of affordable children’s safety products for parents who may be overwhelmed while searching for the best way to keep their child safe, including baby gates, outlet covers, car seats and bike helmets.

In 2008, the Children’s Hospital was awarded a $100,000 grant from the National Association of Children’s Hospitals to start the safety store. Pam Hoogerwerf, the coordinator of the Children’s Hospital’s community outreach and injury prevention, said the Safety Store prices their products lower than market price in hopes that price won’t have to deter parents from keeping their child safe.

“We don’t want price to be a barrier for families to purchase these products,” Hoogerwerf said. “We keep our product pricing very low — probably lower than you’re going to see at most other places, whether it’s online or in a retail store. We want families to be able to utilize the products to hopefully be able to prevent an injury.”

The store was originally a mobile cart that moved from ward to ward, but has since moved to a lobby location. Products are also available online.

Hoogerwerf said the original grant funding is the reason the store can keep its prices so low.

“The luxury of our not having to spend the initial grant money on construction or remodeling space in the hospital here and being able to spend the majority of it on the product inventory really has allowed us to be able to order more product and to sell product,” Hoogerwerf said. “That’s been a big benefit to us.”

In addition to offering low-priced products, injury-prevention experts work in the store, and help families find the products they need to keep their child safe.

Brenda Vergara, a storekeeper at the Safety Store, said this feature is a great benefit for parents who just don’t know where to start their injury-prevention measures.

“I think here in the Safety Store — our biggest selling item and education point — a lot of [customers] are new parents,” Vergara said. “They come here a little bit frazzled with how much information is online, and they kind of want to narrow down whatever they’re looking for.”

Vergara said that the store really goes beyond just being a store and works toward being an education point as well.

“Not just being a store — we definitely want education to be a big part of what we do,” Vergara said. “People come in here — we really want to make sure that they feel confident and educated about things they have questions about.”

About the Author

Kaitlyn DeHaven is the Associate Content Editor for the Infrastructure Solutions Group at 1105 Media.

Featured

  • Electrified Latch Retraction Locks Key Benefits for Retrofits

    Building owners and facility managers increasingly rely on electrified hardware to enhance security while meeting accessibility standards. Among these technologies, electrified or motorized latch retraction locks are especially effective for retrofit projects where existing door and frame conditions complicate upgrades. Latch retraction capable locks combine security, accessibility and code compliance benefits, making them ideal for retrofitting fire-rated and non-rated openings in schools, healthcare facilities, commercial buildings and more. Read Now

  • How Cloud Security Solutions Are Transforming Campus Safety

    Campus administrators today face a challenging mandate: deliver stronger security across their facilities while working within tighter budget constraints. From school districts focused on student safety to hospitals protecting patients and staff, the question remains the same: how do you build security infrastructure that evolves with your needs without requiring massive capital investments? Read Now

  • Rethinking Campus Security From the Inside

    For decades, campus security strategies focused on keeping threats outside school walls. But since the tragedy at Columbine High School, data has shown that many attacks begin inside the building, often in classrooms and corridors. This shift has prompted schools to rethink security from the inside and place greater emphasis on interior elements such as classroom doors. This shift is evidenced by a new generation of classroom door systems engineered to delay inside intruders and an ASTM standard that raises the bar on how these systems must be designed to defend against attack. Read Now

  • AI in Security: Advancing Campus Safety and Considerations for Implementing

    Artificial intelligence (AI) continues to capture attention across every sector, and the physical security industry is no exception. Once seen as experimental, AI-enabled analytics now underpin how organizations monitor environments, detect threats, and make decisions. What was once futuristic is now a practical necessity for safety professionals managing growing volumes of data, tighter resources, and increasing expectations for faster, more accurate responses. Read Now

Most   Popular