Hospital emergency departments are bracing for the annual Christmas injury rush as yuletide festivities and presents bring a raft of risks.

Doctors working over the Christmas period say ’tis the season for falls, electrocutions, food poisoning and children choking on decorations or swallowing toxic button batteries.

Rural Doctors Association of Australia (RDAA) president Megan Belot is urging people to drive safely and to be careful at home as well.

“Christmas is the time of year that you do many things you don’t usually do,” Dr Belot said on Thursday.

“Whether it is backyard cricket, preparing and eating foods you don’t normally eat, or getting presents down from inconvenient hiding places, it is actually very easy to injure yourself or become unwell over the Christmas period.”

Toys with highly toxic button batteries can kill, new party games can be dangerous, and even opening the ubiquitous Christmas cracker can cause eye injuries.

“With many GP clinics closed, this results in increased presentations to hospital emergency departments and puts the entire system under pressure,” Dr Belot said.

Gifts that move, such as skateboards, bikes and scooters, should also come with something more substantial than a Santa hat – a helmet is required.

Dr Belot is also urging care with food preparation and storage, describing food poisoning as “the gift that keeps on giving” in the worst possible way.

Tips for keeping safe over Christmas:

• Read warning labels and follow safety instructions
• Check to ensure button batteries are not accessible to children
• Don’t put heavy items on top of shelves
• Supervise children around pools and ensure gates are secured
• Don’t leave your portable pools filled around small children
• If you have allergies, be cautious when eating food not prepared by you, and keep your medication handy
• Refill prescriptions before public holidays

– AAP