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Clark County Child Fatalities Down in 2009, But Drowning and Accidental Overdoses Rise

Annual Child Death Review Tracks Incidents of Child Fatalities and Arms County Officials with Needed Information to Drive Prevention Efforts

An annual review of child deaths in Clark County reveals that while the overall number of incidents is declining, a rise in drowning and accidental overdose cases indicates more can be done by community members and local officials to improve prevention efforts.

Prepared by the Nevada Institute for Children's Research and Policy (NICRP) at UNLV, the report statistically breaks down the manner and cause of each of the 283 cases of child death in Clark County in 2009. The report uses data gathered by the county's independent child death review team and is designed to help local officials identify trends and risk factors related to how children are dying and target prevention efforts accordingly.

The 283 cases of child death in 2009 represent a nine percent overall decrease in child fatalities from 2008. The manner of death for the cases reviewed includes all natural deaths (185 cases) as well as accidents (57 cases), homicides (17 cases), suicides (four cases) and deaths from undetermined causes (18 cases).

Among the report's significant findings:

  • Poisoning/overdose incidents jumped dramatically to 16 cases, from 12 in 2008 and just four in 2007; nearly half involved the use of prescription painkillers
  • Drowning incidents increased by one from 2008 to 11, with nearly all victims between the ages of one and four and most cases in older areas of Clark County
  • Motor vehicle accidents decreased to 16 from 20 in 2008, but still represent the leading cause of accidental death
  • Homicides decreased nearly 20 percent from 21 in 2008 to 17 in 2009

Since the majority of drowning incidents occurred in older areas of Clark County, report authors call for new regulations to bring older pools up to current standards that include fencing, gates and/or alarms. Authors also recommend more focused public education campaigns on the dangers of recreational use of prescription drugs and urge regulatory officials to look for better ways to control how prescription medications are delivered.

The child death review team consists of members from law enforcement, government, healthcare and the local community. This is the fourth year the NICRP at UNLV has prepared an annual report, which is available at nic.unlv.edu.

Topics:

health and medicine

Campus Units:

School of Public Health,  Nevada Institute for Children's Research and Policy

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