MESA, Ariz. – Through a grant from the Arizona Governor’s Office of Highway Safety, Cardon Children’s Medical Center will receive approximately $10,000 to provide bicycle safety helmets for East Valley kids.

This is the first time Cardon Children’s has received the state grant.

With the funding, Cardon Children’s was able to visit 13 elementary schools in Chandler, Mesa and Gilbert and talk about the importance of bike safety. In April, Cardon Children’s injury prevention experts will return to specially fit the helmets on the children.

More children (ages 5-14) are seen in hospital emergency departments for injuries relating to biking than any other sport, according to Safe Kids Worldwide. Helmets can reduce the risk of severe brain injuries by 88 percent – yet only 45 percent of children 14 and under usually wear a bike helmet, according to the global nonprofit.

“We know that every parent wants to protect their children from harm and to keep them safe. We need to stop preventable deaths from being the number-one killer of our children,’’ said Tracey Fejt, RN, Injury Prevention coordinator at Cardon Children’s.

With the grant, Cardon injury-prevention specialists can also provide education to parents and children about the importance of wearing helmets, she said.

“Providing helmets without education does no good. We have to explain the ‘why’. No one wants to be told to do something so it’s important for us to provide examples, statistics and other resources to show why this is so important,’’ she said.

Cardon Children’s has been providing injury-prevention expertise to Arizona families for more than 30 years.

Cardon Children’s Medical Center provides pediatric care for children, from newborns to teens. Services include emergency care, a Level III neonatal intensive care unit, general pediatrics, surgical and rehabilitation services, hematology/oncology, urology, gastroenterology, neurology and outpatient services. For more information, visit www.BannerHealth.com/CardonChildrens.