Hyundai Hope, the corporate social responsibility initiative of Hyundai Motor America, recently presented Nicklaus Children’s Hospital with a $15,000 donation to the Car Seat Safety Program. The donation will allow the hospital to expand its efforts in providing child passenger safety education and free onsite safety seat checks and installations to the communities it serves. A ceremonial check was presented to Nicklaus Children’s Hospital.

“Hyundai is committed to developing safe, industry-leading vehicles, and a top priority is protecting our passengers and other road users,” said Cole Stutz, chief safety officer, Hyundai Motor North America. “We are proud to support Nicklaus Children’s Hospital and provide more car seat safety education and outreach programs at the local level.”
 
Many families experience obstacles to obtaining the appropriate safety seat for their child, and often resort to using expired, recalled, or otherwise unserviceable seats. Research shows that correctly using safety seats can prevent injuries in child passengers while on the road, and education is key to spreading awareness. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also recently enforced new federal standards that will make car seats easier to use and better at protecting their occupants. Therefore, programs like these will be critical in educating and administering the new standards to the community.
 
“Nicklaus Children’s Hospital is the child safety and injury prevention authority in South Florida. Through the support of Hyundai Hope, our programs can provide more resources and education to our community. These donations are crucial to our safety programs' success and allow us to expand outreach and educational opportunities for all the families we serve,” said, Malvina Duncan, Nicklaus Children’s community outreach injury prevention coordinator and SAFE KIDS Miami-Dade County coordinator.

A portion of the donation will be used to purchase car seats for the car seat safety program at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital.
 
Nicklaus Children’s Hospital is the lead organization for the Miami-Dade County SAFE KIDS Coalition, offering programs that prevent childhood injuries in the community. The hospital’s robust Car Seat Safety Program offers free onsite car seat checks and installations, helping families ensure they are using the appropriate safety seats according to their child’s age and weight and installing the device correctly. The hospital helps families identify the appropriate car seats for their children and accommodates children with special needs by providing specialized car seats. The program installs and checks approximately 225 car seats per year and provides education on topics of child passenger safety, including vehicular heatstroke and rollover prevention, to over 500 caregivers and children.