Soap box moment

Im having a moment after stumbling onto a post about "safety vests", or more commonly referred to as a "harness" on a Wrightslaw blog.  Such devices can be a hot bed of debate amongst parents and professionals, with people on either side of the issue.  I certainly have my opinion, and well, many people might just tell me to take a hike in my support for and belief in there use;  that there akin to torture devices for children.

I could go into the length the reason's why I support there use (and that my child has been in one for many years now, as well as the majority of students that I work with), but simply put, I don't need to.  My child, my choice.

The point in my rant?  The main gist of the woman's commentary was how pissed off she was that her children are now being forced to wear safety vests on a daily basis.  She had explained that previously they were used at driver discretion, when her kids were having a "bad day", otherwise the standard seat belts were usually utilized. 

I must be missing something here.  Your not opposed to there use, just not on a daily basis?  I'll play devil's advocate for a moment, and pretend I think what may be going on in her head to come to this belief that safety vests are on a "as needed basis".  Ya, in theory, children with disabilities don't always have behavioral episodes.  They may need to learn their own self control, and sensory regulation when navigating life.  Some days are good, and some days are bad.   But like any other proactive intervention (though a "harness" may not seem like it), it has to be implemented consistently, to be completely effective.

What if, the driver or aide misses the escalation phase, and can't get a safety vest on your child safely?  What if your child (or children in this case) are so escalated that they injure the driver, aide, or another student?  How would you react if your child/children was injured due to an un-restrained child that was having a behavioral episode?

So many "what if's" to consider.  Also consider that children, special ed or not, still have guidelines that they have to adhere to when it comes to transportation.  I agree 100% that transportation is more often than not a broken system, with less than adequately trained staff, who jump at the smallest infraction.  I live it on a daily basis.  With that being said, they do have guidelines they have to follow, and if the policy is that a child is to be harnessed at all times, then they can no longer use their discretion in deciding the when, and how.

Would I want such a device to be used based off their opinion of the situation..........that would be a resounding "Um no, not on your life"!  Leaving it up to their determination sounds much more like a restraint situation (as the blogger was suggesting) than the consistent use of the device on a daily basis.  And I might add, that seat belts are essentially the same thing, only slightly easier to operate.  Most children can get out of a harness given very little effort (as wonder boy has shed his harness and made it out the window into traffic before).

Maybe Im just over protective, and tend to air on the side of caution.  Caution that I am very well aware of his capacity to injure others on the bus, and himself, should he be given opportunity.  If you were o.k. with the use of a safety vest on your children previously, Im going to guess your well aware of their potential yourself, and should maybe not take this as a personal attack by transportation.  They have a responsibility to all students on the bus, and keeping them safe, whether you feel the change in policy is appropriate, or not.

Disabled or not, we are responsible for our children's actions, and with that comes some less than desirable decisions at times.