Ministry to study second-hand child safety seat option

The Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development will study the proposal to allow the use of second-hand child restraint system (CRS) sets to reduce the burden of those from the low-income households with young children.

Its deputy minister, Hannah Yeoh, said the ministry was in the midst of gathering information about the proposal and it would be announced once finalised.

“This is because many parents bought (CRS) sets but have stopped using them when their children are older," she told reporters after launching the National Welfare Foundation's (YKN) Anjung Kasih facility at the Raja Permaisuri Bainun Hospital in Ipoh, today.

“The policy (on CRS) is not to burden the parents but to protect their children (in vehicles in the event of road accidents).” 

In the meantime, Yeoh expressed hope that parents would not view the policy of using child safety seats as troublesome.

She said people needed to put safety first because if the policy was not implemented, the children could become a victim in the event of a road accident.

Previously, Deputy Prime Minister Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail said the government would deliberate over the use of child safety seats in light of the complaints voiced by parents.

Meanwhile, when commenting on the Anjung Kasih facility, Yeoh said there were 11 Anjung Kasih facilities operating at government hospitals nationwide since its inception in 2006.

Anjung Kasih is an initiative by the YKN which offers rooms and washrooms for underprivileged out-of-towners who have to accompany family members admitted to government hospital.

She said among the hospitals with the facility were the Selayang Hospital, Selangor; the Sultan Ahmad Shah Hospital in Temerloh, Pahang; the Tuanku Jaafar Hospital in Seremban, Negri Sembilan; the Sibu Hospital, Sarawak, and Penang Hospital.

Another Anjung Kasih facility has already been constructed at the Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital in Alor Star, while four others were still under construction, namely, at Sandakan Hospital, Sabah; the National Cancer Institute in Putrajaya, the Putrajaya Hospital and the Melaka Hospital, she said.

-- Bernama