The Burn Prevention Network Awarded $27,500 for Prevention Education and Survivor Support

The Fleming Foundation, Zionsville, PA, has announced that a grant totaling $27,500 has been awarded to The Burn Prevention Network in support of two separate programs, Camp Susquehanna and Home Safe Home.

Camp Susquehanna was allocated $12,500 of the funds to support a growing number of campers expected as a result of the program’s expansion. The purpose of Camp Susquehanna is to provide a safe, non-judgmental environment where children, ages 7 – 17, who have experienced a burn injury can make life-long friends, improve their self-esteem, learn social skills and have FUN! Just last month, our staff members virtually hosted 40 youth campers for our 2-week summer camp. This grant will specifically fund the quarterly, or seasonal, 1 day Seasonal Camp Susquehanna events to follow in October, February and April. Camp Susquehanna serves campers from the Greater Lehigh Valley, as well as throughout Pennsylvania and contiguous states. To learn more about Camp, please visit the Camp page here!

Home Safe Home (HSH), a prevention program for caregivers of infants and toddlers, was allocated $15,000 in order to update the educational video component of the program. The objective of HSH is to teach parents critical burn prevention lessons when they are most receptive to parenting skills education, which happens to be on or before the baby’s arrival. As a result, HSH is distributed onsite in the Mother/Baby Unit of our partnering hospital, Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN), in addition to other Eastern PA pediatric facilities. All materials included in the program are available in both English and Spanish.

Since its outset in 2011, Home Safe Home has decreased infant burn admittance in our partner hospital system by 28%. Despite this success, the 10-year old educational video is in need of an update to reflect best practices for burn prevention with modern products. These grant funds will be used for both pre- and post-production of an updated educational video, in both English and Spanish, to be distributed within all LVHN facilities in the Mother/Baby Unit, in addition to other partnering pediatric facilities. We expect to reach 4,000 new families each year with this new educational tool.

Nicole Meilinger

Development Manager, Burn Prevention Network