Her Royal Highness of Spain Visits Worcester-Area School to Promote Childhood Safety
WEBSTER – Her Royal Highness, the Infanta Elena, sister of King Felipe VI of Spain, today joined local officials and leaders from MAPFRE Foundation and UMass Memorial Medical Center at Webster Middle School to launch Safety Quest, an innovative mobile classroom that is using video games to educate students on fire, home, play and street safety.
The UMass Memorial Injury Prevention Center and MAPFRE Foundation partnered to create the custom-designed recreational vehicle to advance injury prevention among young people. The fun, memorable video games were developed to teach children to spot injury risks and how to avoid them.
“Ninety-five percent of child injury is preventable,” said Michael Hirsh, M.D., surgeon-in-chief, pediatric surgery, at the UMass Memorial Medical Center. “We created the Safety Quest video games so children will take away the message that there are actions they can take to avoid getting hurt.”
As part of her visit to the United States to meet with Foundation partners, the Infanta Elena, project director for the global foundation, heard directly from students about their understanding of safe behavior and how they avoid injury.
“I am very excited to see this interactive classroom experience and thank all those who have made injury prevention come alive in children’s minds,” said Her Royal Highness, the Infanta Elena, program director of MAPFRE Foundation. “We expect that thousands of students will remember to keep themselves safe after participating in the Safety Quest program.”
Inside the Safety Quest classroom, students engaged in:
Escape Artist, a playful, immersive fire safety experience where kids learn what to do and what not to do in the event of a fire. They are taught to make a plan to stay safe and best escape should a fire occur at home.
Street Smarts, where young people are taught to pay attention to their surroundings when traveling the streets. Using touchscreen tablets, students adopt an animated character who makes its way around a neighborhood by foot and by bicycle. They gain points by avoiding obstacles, like moving cars and people, and making the right choices.
Home Hazard Hunt, in which students spend time in the home and in the playground and pool area, all while spotting potential hazards. When they gesture at the dangers they find, they will earn points.
Safety Quest is the culmination of two years of planning and creating among UMass Memorial Medical Center and MAPFRE executives.
“Through something as enjoyable as video games, this traveling classroom brings home important safety messages for our children and families,” said Jaime Tamayo, president and chief executive officer of MAPFRE Insurance and chief representative of MAPFRE Foundation in the U.S. “We are very proud of our collaboration with UMass Memorial Medical Center to advance the well-being of our youngest residents of Massachusetts.”
The Safety Quest mobile classroom is visiting schools in Auburn, Dudley, East Brookfield, Marlboro, Millbury, Norton, Southbridge, Sutton, Sturbridge, Winchendon this fall, and Worcester in spring. Safety Quest will also visit community events, like the UMass Employee Family Fun Day in Polar Park on Oct. 22.
About MAPFRE Foundation
MAPFRE Foundation, a nonprofit based in Madrid, Spain, and with North American headquarters in Webster, Massachusetts, aims to promote the well-being of society and citizens. Injury prevention and road safety are focus areas to which the foundation is dedicated. It models its programs to align with the Vision Zero movement, which seeks to eliminate traffic fatalities and severe injuries among all road users.
About UMass Memorial Health Injury Prevention Center
The UMass Memorial Health Injury Prevention Center is leading a coordinated effort to reduce injuries in the community we serve, guided by the belief that everyone should have access to accurate and up-to-date information and resources to live a healthier, safer life.
