Injury prevention and control

The Healthy Communities Program aims to prevent, and reduce injuries in Macomb by supporting residents with educational resources and contacts for programming.

Injury prevention and control

What is injury prevention?

The leading causes of death for Americans between the ages of 1 and 45 are injuries and violence. Prevention and safety promotion is made of many disciplines and interest areas:

  1. Opioid and overdose (poison/medication)
  2. Suicide 
  3. Violence (youth violence, sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and firearm violence)
  4. Concussion (traumatic brain injury)
  5. Motor Vehicle Crash/Pedestrian safety (car seats)
  6. Older Adult falls
  7. ACES and other emerging areas
  8. General safety (drowning, burns, toy safety, sleep safety etc.)

Injury prevention topics and resources

Substance use

Marijuana 
Suicide

https://www.mccmh.net/
Violence (youth violence, sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and firearm violence)

https://turningpointmacomb.org/
Concussion (sports)

CDC's Heads-up resources for concussion prevention
Motor vehicle crash/pedestrian safety (car seats)

Starting April 2, 2025, Michigan has new rules to help keep kids safe in cars. Car seats and booster seats save lives, but crashes are still the top cause of death for young kids. These new laws make sure kids are in the right car seat for their age, weight, and height.

Here’s what the law says:

  • Infants to 2 years old: Must ride in a rear-facing car seat until they turn 2 or reach the seat’s height or weight limit.
  • 2 to 5 years old: Can ride in a forward-facing car seat until they turn 5 or reach the seat’s limit.
  • 5 to 8 years old: Use a booster seat with a lap-and-shoulder belt until they turn 8 or are 4 feet 9 inches tall—whichever comes first.
  • Under 13 years old: Must ride in the back seat if the car has one.

Other important rules:

  • Kids under 4 must ride in the back seat if there’s space.
  • A rear-facing car seat can’t go in the front seat unless the airbag is turned off.
  • All kids need to be in a car seat or booster until they turn 8 or are 4'9" tall—whichever happens first.

Parents are encouraged to check that their child’s car seat is the right fit and used correctly. For help or to find a car seat check near you, visit Michigan.gov/carseats.

Unfortunately, 8 out of 10 car seats are used incorrectly.  Some common mistakes associated with car seat use are:

  • Not securing the car seat tightly to the vehicle (it should move less than one inch)
  • Not securing the child in the car seat correctly (harnesses should be snug to the child)
  • Not using a booster seat when a child out grows his/her car seat

A nationally certified child passenger safety (CPS) technician provides personalized instruction about how to properly install a car seat in a vehicle, as well as how to properly secure a child in the car seat. 

Inspection station locations

Car seat safety fact sheet

Basic need-to-know information on all stages of car seats.
Older Adult falls

https://www.canr.msu.edu/matter-of-balance/index?page=2
ACES and other emerging areas

https://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention/aces/index.html
General safety (drowning, burns, toy safety, sleep safety etc.)

https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/accidental-injury.htm

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Contact Healthy Communities Program

Address: 25401 Harper Ave, Saint Clair Shores, MI 48081

Call: 586-412-3399

Email: Jennifer.Franz@macombgov.org