SR0078 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SR0078 LRB101 10748 MST 55866 r

SENATE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Burn injuries continue to be one of the leading causes of accidental death and injury in our nation; tragically, children, the elderly, and the disabled are especially vulnerable to burn injuries, and almost one-third of all burn injuries occur in children under the age of 15; and

WHEREAS, Annually, in the United States, approximately 486,000 people receive medical care for treatment of burn injuries; in 2016 alone, there were 3,280 deaths from fire and smoke inhalation, and another 40,000 people were treated in hospitals for burn related injuries; and

WHEREAS, Children under five are 2.4 times as likely as the general population to suffer burn injuries that require emergency medical treatment, and young adults ages 20-29 have a probability of burn injury that is roughly 1.5 times the risk of the general population; and

WHEREAS, The primary causes of injury include fire-flame, scalds, electrical, and chemicals; most of the injuries occur in the home; today, 96.8% of those who suffer burn injuries will survive; unfortunately, many of those survivors will sustain serious scarring, life-long physical disabilities, and adjustment difficulties; and

WHEREAS, National Burn Awareness Week, an initiative of the American Burn Association, is a coming together of burn, fire, and life safety educators to make the public aware of the frequency, devastation, and causes of burn injury, to offer consistent and authoritative measures to prevent these injuries, and to detail how to best care for those that are injured; and

WHEREAS, Significant research and medical advances have dramatically improved burn care and treatment, aided rehabilitation, shortened hospital stays, and increased burn survival rates; aftercare support for the physical and emotional effects of burns has also played a key role in the successful reintegration of burn survivors into our communities; furthermore, burn safety education and prevention efforts continue to reduce the number of people who suffer burns each year; and

WHEREAS, Many people devote their lives and careers to treating, caring for, supporting, and rehabilitating burn injury survivors, including those performing vital work in burn research and development; there are dedicated fire fighters who risk their own lives every day to protect others, as well as burn foundations and other life safety professionals who promote burn injury awareness and prevention; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare February 3-9, 2019 as Burn Awareness Week in the State of Illinois; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to the American Burn Association as a symbol of our respect and esteem.