Hap Gerrish Injury Prevention Resources
A partnership between the Kiwanis Foundation of New England and Tufts Medical Center since 1981.
diverse children

Tufts Medicine Pediatrics

Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute (KPTI) operates under the Tufts Medicine Pediatrics umbrella and continue its safety mission by:

  • Developing innovative injury prevention programs for families
  • Providing injury prevention research/education opportunities for medical, nursing and injury prevention professionals. The mission extends beyond treating injuries to better medical care, professional training and research and safety outreach to communities.

Unintentional injuries

Unintentional injuries (accidents) - caused by motor vehicle crash, suffocation drowning, poisoning, fires and falls – are the leading cause of child death and disability in the USA. Most of these injuries are preventable.

Preventable injuries

To bring about a reduction in the number of preventable injuries multiple prevention material and resources that target families with children ages birth through 14 years are distributed; also, training of medical personnel, injury prevention coordinators, caregivers, childcare providers, educators and community organizations to facilitates preventing the underlying causes.
Contact us
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Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute
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Tufts Medical Center
800 Washington St #344
Boston, MA 02111

Partner organizations

Kiwanis Foundation of New England

Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute (KPTI)

Hap Gerrish

Dr. Gerrish, who first joined the Kiwanis Club of Dover-Foxcroft in 1957 served as club president in 1965 and led 22 Kiwanis clubs in central Maine as Lt. Governor of the New England District in 1967. He was also a Distinguished Governor of the New England District in 1991-1992. He served 28 years on the Board of the Kiwanis Foundation of New England and was President from 1981-83.

His name is displayed permanently at Kiwanis International as a three-time recipient of the Tablet of Honor, the highest award given to individuals who have exemplified dedicated service to Kiwanis, their club or community. He was a life member of Kiwanis International, a 49-year member of the Legion of Honor and a George F. Hixon fellow of the Kiwanis International Foundation.

Dr. Gerrish earned his DMD from Tufts Dental School in 1955. While attending Tufts Dental School he played first violin with the Boston Pops for Arthur Fiedler. In the mid 1950’s, he was a paratrooper for the U.S. Army and ran a dental clinic at Fort Bragg, NC. He also completed an internship at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D.C.

Harold T. ‘Hap’ Gerrish, DMD, who served on the board at Tufts-New England Medical Center for over twenty years, died on June 29th 2006, at his Bowerbank, Maine home on Sebec Lake. Dr. Gerrish, 76 years old, was co-founder of the Kiwanis Pediatric Trauma Institute.
Hap Gerrish

Child safety community + resources

Water safety

Not including boating incidents, on average about nine people die from drowning every day in the United States, according to Injury Facts® the annual statistical report on unintentional injuries produced by the National Safety Council.
Pool + home water safety

Safe Kids water safety

Water safety

Keeping kids safe in and around water

Learning to swim

Kids activities on pool safety

Water safety fact sheets (multiple languages)
Swim + boat safety

Wearing a life jacket

Safe boating
Drowning facts + prevention

Drowning facts + data

Drowning prevention

Bicycle + youth sports safety

Information on preventing bicycle injuries, proper helmet fitting and sports related concussions.
Bike safety

Bicycle tips for parents and kids

How to fit a bike helmet

Kiwanis bike program
Youth sports safety

Concussions in youth sports

Preventing concussions

Car seat safety

Car seats and boosters provide protection for infants and children in a crash, yet car crashes are a leading cause of death for children ages 1 to 13. That's why it's so important to choose and use the right car seat correctly every time your child is in the car.
Car seat safety, selection + installation

Car seat safety

Car seats + special health needs

Selecting the right car seat

Car seat installation instructions

Car seat inspection sites
Child passenger safety

Keeping kids safe in and around cars

Child passenger safety tool kits

Various parent resources

Burns + fire safety

This list of resources on fire prevention for families and children offers engaging materials and safety tips to help young ones understand the importance of fire safety.
Cooking safety tips

Cooking fire and burn safety (English)

Cooking fire and burn safety (Spanish)
Prevent fires from lighters and matches

Keep lighters and matches away from children
Burns and scalds

Tips to prevent and treat burns and scalds
Halloween fire safety tips

How to stay safe on Halloween at home and while trick-or-treating

Safe sleep for infants

This list of resources on sleep safety for infants provides essential guidelines and expert advice on creating a safe sleep environment to reduce the risk of SUID and promote healthy sleep habits.
Safe to Sleep®

Safe sleep for babies

Safe to sleep video (Spanish)
Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID)

Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID) information

Bullying + violence prevention

Resources for bullying prevention, offering support, educational tools, and strategies to create safer environments for children. These resources provide valuable guidance for schools, parents, and communities to address and prevent bullying effectively.
Bullying resources

Bullying prevention + intervention

Tips for parents + caregivers to prevent bullying

National Bullying Prevention Center

Teen driver safety

Information on distracted driving, including cellphone use, significantly increases crash risk, with texting or manipulating a phone being particularly dangerous. Learn to help reduce these distractions.
Distracted driving

Road safety for teen drivers

Tips to avoid distracted driving be teens

Other safety information

Injury prevention resources covering topics like the hazards of button battery ingestion, recalled products list + a family safety activity book designed for kids ages 5 to 8, to learn about safety at home, play and on the road.
General information

Information to educate on several injury prevention topics

 
Hazards of button batteries

Information on button and lithium coin batteries

Button and lithium coin batteries safety walkthrough
Recalled product list

US consumer recalled product list
Safety activity books for children

Free Safe Kids family safety activity book (ages 5-8)