'Unintentional deaths' biggest kiwi kid killer

Ruapehu Bulletin, Volume 14, Issue 652, 3 September 1996, Page 6

'Unintentional deaths' biggest kiwi kid killer

Kidsafe Week focuseson preventable aoddents involving children

'Unintentional injuries' are the biggest killer of New Zealand children beyond infancy, say the organisers of KidSafe Week - New Zealand' s first national child safety week. KidSafe Week, September 7-13, aims to focus public and decision-maker attention on the issue of unintentional injuries — 'accidents' — to Kiwi children under 15. One of the most serious issues to be addressed during KidSafe Week will be the number of deaths each year from 'preventable accidents'. Reena Kokotailo, director for Safekids, the Week's coordinating agency, says Ministry of Health statistics show that after the first year of life unintentional injury accounts for approximately 46 per cent of all child deaths. "Until recently the magnitude of New Zealand' s unintentional injury problem has been hidden. Now, we know that for every child that dies from violence, abuse or suicide in this country, nine will die from preventable 'accidents' such as drownings, motor vehicle crashes, and fires." More children annually will die from unintentional injuries than from all childhood diseases combined. These injuries kill three tirhes more children than cancer, three times as many children as respiratory illness (including asthma), and seven times more children than infectious diseases. In addition, each year an estimated 15,000 children (enough to fill around 500 classrooms) are hospitalised with unintentional injuries. Thousands more are treated for injuries at private accident and emergency clinics, by their GP, or their families. "Unintentional injury costs this country more than $57 million a year in hospital treatment and ACC claims alone

- and that' s just the tip of the iceberg," says Ms Kokotailo. Despite the high numbers of deaths and injuries, and the financial cost to the nation, unintentional injury is not seen as a serious issue. "People assume being hurt is all part of growing up, that it's a normal part of childhood. When a child dies they say it's a tragedy but believe it's just one of those things." The real tragedy, Ms Kokotailo says, is that in most cases unintentional injuries and deaths can be prevented. Prevention will be the key message during KidSafe Week. Six national agencies have joined with Safekids, the Week's founding sponsor SmithKline Beecham (makers of Panadol) and sponsor TV3, to develop the week and its prevention message. They are ACC, the Land Transport Safety Authority, the NZ Fire Service, NZ Police, Plunket and the Office of the Commissioner for Children. 'The theme for the week is 'Make it KidSafe', emphasising that by improving the safety of home, play and traffic environments we can keep kids safe from injury. Each of the agencies involved recognises the need for environments to be safe - and realises that, realistically, parents cannot supervise children 24 hours a day." Decision makers, as well as families, will be targeted with the 'Make it KidSafe' message during the Week. "Children's safety isn't just the responsibility of parents. We all have a role to play - as drivers, manufacturers, teachers, and legislators. One of the things we want people to realise is that, in many cases, their actions and their policies do affect the safety of children." The safety of home, road and play environments are particularly critical for children. This year KidSafe Week is focusing on the prevention of a particular 'danger' in each of these three environments.

Home safety Safety in the home will focus on the prevention of burns and scalds. Around seven children, most under five, die in house or car fires annually, and more than 450 end up in hospital with scalds from household water that's too hot - or from hot liquids like tea and coffee. Safety on the road will

focus on child pedestrian injury which kills more children than all infectious diseases. Organisers say each day, on average, one child pedestrian is hospitalised. Every 18 days, on average, a child pedestrian is killed. Play safe Under the play area, trampoline related injuries, which account for more than 2600 children being treated at hospitals each year, will be targeted. "Injuries can be serious - some even life-threatening. Our message to the public and those with the power to make change is not that we want kids to be wrapped in cotton wool, but that we, as adults, need to take responsibility for reducing their risk of injury by making our homes, roads and play areas safer." "That isn't always a difficult task. In some cases, it is merely a matter of changing the way we think and act, or putting in simple safeguards. What it really means is making the effort so that today's children grow up to be tomorrow's adults."