Deaths due to illness, anomalies, perinatal and other ill-defined conditions, and the so-called natural cases, accounted for 72.3 % of child fatalities during 1996. To really get an overview of the deaths which substantially impact a community, one must look at the deaths which are considered to be inflicted injury such as accidental, homicide or suicide in manner. These deaths accounted for 38.2% of the deaths in 1996. Even more disturbing is when one considers the actual number of inflicted injury deaths. 57.3% of the injurious deaths in 1996 were the result of inflicted injuries in Tarrant County alone.
Another trend which is being followed is the circumstance surrounding the deaths of children from 12 to 17 years of age. A dramatic trend has been observed in the shifting of the perpetrator from that of a care provider to another "child." We are now seeing "Children Killing Children."
Another disturbing trend is the intentional taking of one’s life. Dramatic increases have been seen in the Suicide rate in Tarrant County over the past 2 years in ages between 13 and 17 years of age. Is this a trend or a "fluke" which has occurred. As these events continue to unfold, the Team will need to look toward addressing prevention issues to reduce this number.
As we begin toward the new millennium, newer areas of prevention will unfold as the result of the Child Fatality Review process. One area which is currently being focused on is the area of drowning deaths. Tarrant and the surrounding counties has exhibited an extremely high rate of drowning deaths over the past several years with a peak in 1994 - 1995. As the result of the data formulated from the Tarrant County Child Fatality Review Team, a special focus group has been launched. Through a cooperative effort with the Tarrant County SafeKids Program, Fort-Worth/Tarrant County Health Department and the Tarrant County Child Fatality Review Team, the Tarrant County Water Safety Council was formed to address the issue of Water Safety. Additional areas of prevention which has been focused on have been children’s car safety seats and firearm safety. As time reveals the special needs of the community, so will the needs for focus groups to better educate the public toward preventative measures.
