In this Child Safety section we present a range of articles for parents, each covering a specific area, such as Water Safety, Safe Toys, Poisons, etc.
Overview of Child Safety in NZ
Following the December 2008 international release of The World Report on Child Injury Prevention, Safekids New Zealand and other global child safety organisations are banding together and calling for Governments to recognize unintentional childhood injuries as a major public health issue, and to make a cost-effective investment in child safety.
According to The World Report, 950,000 children and young people die annually worldwide, with "unintentional injuries" (eg. road traffic injuries, drowning, burns, falls and poisoning) accounting for almost 90% of these cases.
There is no room for complacency in New Zealand, as the "2007 UNICEF Innocenti Report Card" reveals that New Zealand is ranked last (24th out of 24) among Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in preventing child injury related deaths.
“The common view in New Zealand and around the world that unintentional injuries are mere accidents is unacceptable. If a disease were killing our children at the rate that unintentional injuries are, the public would be outraged and demand that governments stop this global killer,” said Ann Weaver, Director of Safekids New Zealand.
New Zealand Injury Statistics
The World Report by WHO and UNICEF rates Motor Vehicle Crash and Drowning injuries as the leading cause of childhood injuries resulting in deaths in New Zealand.
Based on Safekids New Zealand’s Unintentional Childhood Injury fact sheets, on average, 22 children a year are killed as car occupants, and 15 children drown every year.
Safekids New Zealand fact sheet also show that Falls are the leading cause for hospitalisations, with 4,854 children in New Zealand injured severely enough to be hospitalized annually, or an average of 405 hospital admissions each month.
Safekids New Zealand data also shows that over 9,800 children in New Zealand are hospitalized annually with an unintentional injury. “This is equivalent to an average size classroom of children injured severely enough to be hospitalized every day,” said Ms. Weaver.
About Safekids New Zealand
Safekids New Zealand is the injury prevention service of Starship Children’s Health and a member of SAFE KIDS Worldwide. Our mission is to reduce the incidence and severity of unintentional injuries to New Zealand's children aged 0 - 14 years.
To find out more about the Safekids, visit www.safekids.org.nz or contact 09 630 9955 or email info@safekids.govt.nz.