Children Ages 0-4 Years-Old are South Carolina's Most Susceptible to Unintentional Injury and Death
Columbia, SC The Annie E. Casey Foundation's Kids Count Data Book ranks South Carolina 42nd out of the 50 states in child death rates. This means children in 41 states are considered safer and have a better chance for survival than children living in the Palmetto State. Unintentional injury is the number one cause of death for children and youth ages 1-19, constituting 54% of all deaths. South Carolina's youngest children, (0-4 years old) are most vulnerable to injury and death resulting from lack of supervision or safety precautions by caregivers. An annual average of 52 children ages 0-4 died due to unintentional injury and death between 1999-2003.
The top four causes of unintentional death in children ages 0-4 are:
- suffocation/strangulation
- automobile accidents
- drownings
- fire/smoke
Suffocation/Strangulation In 2002, 18 deaths were caused by suffocation/strangulation. Of these, 50% were due to roll over or overlay of a child while sleeping with an adult. Co-sleeping is a topic that can cause some controversy. While co-sleeping facilitates bonding of mother and baby and is a natural position for breast-feeding, the danger of roll-over, suffocation, or falling is a threat to children. According to the 1999-2002 South Carolina State Child Fatality Advisory Committee Records, 188 child deaths were associated with unsafe sleeping arrangements. There are simple preventative measures that all parents, grandparents and caretakers of children should practice - The Four "Ss" of Safe Sleeping.
- Stay off Stomach. Never place babies to sleep on their stomachs.
- Safe Surroundings. Remove all pillows, stuffed toys and excess blankets from the bed.
- Safe Snuggling. Do not fall asleep with a baby in your arms or lap. Never lie down with a baby, especially if you have been drinking or sleepy.
- Safe Surface. Babies should sleep on a firm, flat surface. Never put a baby to sleep on a couch, waterbed or adult bed. Danger areas are: in the space between the mattress and wall; between the mattress and headboard or footboard. Between bed railings.
The four "Ss" are part of a public awareness campaign developed by a coalition including the SC State Child Fatality Advisory Committee, DHEC, South Carolina Kids Count, Voices for South Carolina's Children, DSS, Safe Kids South Carolina, the State Department of Education, First Steps, Prevent Child Abuse South Carolina, and others. The campaign, called Safe Sleeping Saves, to begin in the fall of 2005.
Automobile Accidents are a leading cause of unintentional death of children 0-4. Fortunately, according to DHEC's Vital Statistics data, the occurrence of child fatality due to automobile accidents has been on the decline. In South Carolina in 1999, 22 children ages 0-4 died in car accidents, in comparison, in 2003, 7 children (0-4) were automobile accident victims. This could be attributed to stricter seatbelt and car seat laws that were passed in the General Assembly. Public awareness efforts about child safety seats have been supported by law enforcement and other groups holding "safety checks" where proper installation of child safety seats are demonstrated. According to the National Child Death Review, 47% of children under age five who died in motor vehicle crashes were not restrained.
Unintentional drownings are a common cause of unintentional death of children 0-4 in South Carolina. Most of the drownings occurred in bodies of water such as creeks, rivers or ponds, followed by pools and bathtubs. CPR, life saving techniques, and life vests do not replace adult supervision. Most drownings of young children happen during a momentary interval of non-supervised time. Supervision and teaching children to swim at a young age are the best measures to protect children from drowning.
Fire/smoke-related unintentional death has claimed 10 young children each year in South Carolina for the past ten years. In 2002 fire/smoke victims were evenly divided between males and females. African Americans represented 60% of these fatalities. All of the fire deaths (in 2002) occurred in the child's primary residence or residence of a friend. Public awareness of the importance of fire prevention and maintaining functional smoke detectors could help cut the numbers of these tragedies. Also, requiring landlords of rental apartments/homes to maintain smoke detectors and fire extinguishers would prevent unnecessary deaths.
During 2005/06 SC Kids Count is organizing enhanced collaboration through PAT (Parents As Teachers) programs, DHEC Nursing/FSS staff, pediatricians, Parentwise centers and others to reduce child fatalities through education of parents and caregivers of children. Pediatricians and DHEC nurses have direct access to almost all parents and caregivers of young children and can spread safety messages to clients daily. PAT Programs and Parentwise (a program of Voices for South Carolina's Children) are home visitation and group training programs that empower parents to be their children's first teacher. By enhancing the efforts of professionals who most frequently see the parents of younger children, more information and training on child safety can be provided. Through this effort, such tragedies as overlay suffocation, drownings and deadly fires and auto crashes can be prevented.
For the Annie E. Casey 2005 Kids Count Databook and South Carolina Kids Count state and county data compared with the Nation and other states, please visit South Carolina Kids Count.
Safe Kids USA has an excellent website that provides fact sheets on 17 types of injuries. The two-page fact sheets provide critical information on the who, what, where, how, and cost of each type of injury. In terms of the number of deaths of children under age 15 from unintentional injury, the top causes are motor vehicle occupant injuries, drowning, pedestrian injury, airway obstruction, burns, residential fire, sports and recreational injury, and bicycle injury. The top causes of costs resulting from injury are falls, motor vehicle occupant injury, pedestrian injury, poisoning, burns, bicycle injury, and injury at school. The cost of hospital and emergency room treatment for 85,000 injured children under age 15 in South Carolina during 2003-2004 was $68.5 million.
Contact: Kelly Graham/Voices for SC's Children/803-256-4670 ext. 227/e-mail: kgraham@scchildren.org and website: www.scchildren.org
Additional Resources:
SC State Child Fatality Advisory Committee 2002 Annual Report & Fact Sheets.
Voices for South Carolina's Children is an independent, nonprofit child advocacy organization that works to improve the lives of children in the Palmetto State by providing resources and information on children's issues to families, child advocates, lawmakers and concerned citizens. Our mission is to ensure that every child in South Carolina has the opportunity to become productive citizens of tomorrow. Much of our efforts and focus come from the Annie E. Casey Foundation's Kids Count Data Book and South Carolina Kid Count.