Last year 2016 there were several stories in the Irish media about children in crèches catching, trapping, pinching their fingers in the doors with the end result that payments from €20000 to €40000 being made against the crèches by the courts.
We have been selling Finger Protection Safety Door Guards (door shields) for the door jambs and hinges for fifteen years now, and I can say without a doubt that those in charge of schools, crèches, Montessori’s and public buildings over the last few years have become much more proactive in taking preventative action for this type of accident. I would get many more enquires now about our products from those that have never had any such nasty door & finger injury take place on their premises and that they are just much more aware of the dangers that the door jambs present, particularly to children, whether it is because of the media reports such as in the links above, or from health & safety advisors or inspectors within their industry.
Either way it makes a massive change to when we first started selling the Finger Protectors (otherwise known as pinch guards to our American friends) when the majority of calls we received were after the accident and that our door safety products where now required urgently to stop anything happening again in the future. I would still get calls like this but nowhere close to the amount back then.
If I was to give advice to anyone planning on kitting their doors out with Finger Protectors I would say don’t neglect even one door. Cover them all because experience tells me that it is that one door you decided could go without that catches the finger and makes all your hard work and money well spent now seem as if it was for nothing in the end. Some who read this will know exactly what I am talking about.
Remember – 15 children each week in Ireland have to attend a hospital to receive emergency surgery to their fingers that they trapped in the door. This figure does not take into account those that attended their doctor or local clinic for a maybe less serious finger injury caused by the door, but based on UK statistics my guess is that it is in and around 60 children a week. It is simply not worth the risk – cover those door jambs and avoid the worry.