Children's Health Children's Safety

Head Smarts: A Young Biker's Story

Summary & Participants

For some kids, wearing protective gear while having fun is the essence of uncool. But wearing a bike helmet should be a given for everyone. This rule is an easy one to forget or ignore--for parents and children alike--but stories like Peter Beal's serve as a strong reminder that it's better to be safe than sorry. Join us as Peter shares his tale, and how it could have turned out differently.

Medically Reviewed On: June 19, 2008

Webcast Transcript

BONNIE BOSWELL: Hello, I am Bonnie Boswell and welcome to our program. Today, we are talking about preteens and how to avoid injuries. My guests today are Denise Beal and her son Peter, who had first hand experience with injury. Peter, tell us about your experience.

PETER BEAL: I was riding my bike with my brother and two friends. As we were crossing the street, a car struck me. I wouldn't say I flew, but I kind of skidded 50 feet on my bike. After that, the ambulance came, and they assessed my situation and they said that they were taking me to Children's Hospital and that is how I ended up.

BONNIE BOSWELL: Were you totally shocked? What was going through your mind as that occurred?

PETER BEAL: I have no clue. I do not remember anything.

BONNIE BOSWELL: Did this kind of happen suddenly for you? Did this kind of come out of nowhere? What was that feeling like? Where were you at the time? Were you between cars? Or were you at the intersection? Where were you?

PETER BEAL: I was just kind of in the driveway, and I just don't remember anything. I remember like nothing of that day. I don't remember anything a few days before. I only remember things like once I woke up in the hospital, thinking that it is a dream.

BONNIE BOSWELL: Okay. You must have been terrified. Were you there at home?

DENISE BEAL: I was at home, thankfully, with my husband, and we got a phone call from his hysterical friend saying that Peter had been hit. So, immediately your mind kind goes into shock, and I am thinking, oh, a car backed out of a driveway and bumped him. But, the moment we arrived at the scene, we knew it was very serious, because they had already blocked off the entire street. It was horrific.

BONNIE BOSWELL: So, you got to the hospital, and then what happened?

DENISE BEAL: Basically, my husband flew in the helicopter with my son, and they were there first. I drove with a friend. We were met by a social worker and she immediately told me everything that was going on to allay any of my fears.

BONNIE BOSWELL: What kind of injuries did he have?

DENISE BEAL: He had multiple injuries. His femur was an open fracture in three places. His tibia was broken. His wrist was shattered. He had internal injuries, a collapsed lung, and so they had to take him into surgery, to find out where he was bleeding from. They fixed that, and then they had an Orthopedic Team come in and fix all of his bones.

BONNIE BOSWELL: So, how long was the recovery period?

DENISE BEAL: In the hospital, he was there for ten days. But, it was a good year of recovery and different physical therapy and even after that (this happened when he was 11) and still at 15, he experiences problems. But, he is alive.

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