Injury Prevention
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Injury is the leading cause of death and disability among children and young adults. More than 150,000 people die each year as a result of injuries from motor vehicle crashes, fires, drowning, falls, and poisonings (including suicide and homicide). With their established community relationships, local health departments (LHDs) play a crucial role in injury prevention efforts. 
Children under one year of age have the highest rate of unintentional home injury deaths compared with all other childhood age groups at the rate of 12.19 per 100,000 infants. Children between one and four years of age have the highest rate of unintentional nonfatal home injuries with an annual rate of 3,965 per 100,000 children between the ages of one and four. These statistics demonstrate the heightened vulnerability of infants and young children to injuries that occur in the home. A child’s increasing and unstable mobility, coupled with their natural curiosity, makes them especially susceptible to getting hurt by everyday household objects and products. The primary concerns for infant and baby home safety include keeping chemicals out of the reach of children, closely supervising babies around water, keeping children away from peeling paint and other potential sources of lead, clearing the home of plastic bags, small objects, and other choking/suffocation hazards, and preventing accidental falls and burns. Although these concerns are numerous and can often be overlooked, local health departments can educate parents and other caregivers and ensure they have the assistance necessary in making the home a safe place for their young children. Some interventions and tools used by health professionals to improve home safety for babies include home visiting, home safety checklists, and home safety kits. More » Injury Prevention Webcast Series NACCHO, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, and the State and Territorial Injury Prevention Directors Association are sponsoring a monthly series of topical injury prevention webcasts. The theme for the 2010 webcast series is "Policy Approaches to Injury & Violence Prevention." Throughout the year, webcasts will focus on how injury and violence prevention initiatives in both intentional and unintentional areas have used policies to improve outcomes in states and local communities. In addition, the importance of effective state and local collaborations in the implementation of these initiatives will be emphasized. More>>
News from CDC's Injury Center The American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has published a new special issue entirely devoted to injury prevention. Injury Prevention: A Medical and Public Health Imperative (January 2010) addresses the topic of unintentional injury prevention as a lifestyle problem. More>> |
