8 Stark Truths About The UK's Child Mortality Rates

The UK has the worst levels of child mortality in Western Europe according to the Royal College of Paediatrics & Child Health and the National Children's Bureau.

1. Sweden has the lowest rates of child mortality in Western Europe; the UK has the highest number of excess deaths.

thelancet.com

The UK has 45% more child deaths per 100,000 than Sweden.

2. In total, almost 6,000 under 18s die each year.

rcpch.ac.uk

Accounting for population size, that means we have nearly 2,000 excess deaths per year compared to Sweden.

The vast majority of deaths occur in those children who are under the age of 1. The next biggest age group for children and young people to die is 15-19.

3. How about we stick our fingers in our ears?

rcpch.ac.uk

As part of cost-cutting measures, the Office for National Statistics proposed to stop counting the number of children who die. If we don't acknowledge the problem it means it doesn't exist??

Thankfully, following a campaign from leading children's charities, the stats were saved and will continue to be collected.

4. The leading causes of death in children.

The vast majority of children under 1 who die are perinatal with the next biggest cause being congenital problems. 5% of those under 1 who die do so from Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (previously known as Cot Death).

Teenagers are more likely to die of cancer, risky behaviours (including suicide) and a range of external factors (predominantly road traffic accidents).

5. Road traffic accidents kill a lot of teenagers

rcpch.ac.uk

With almost 2,000 excess deaths in the UK per year (compared to the best performer, Sweden) surely road traffic accidents are among the most preventable?

6. 27 children and young people die each year due to assault and abuse.

rcpch.ac.uk

Assault and abuse disproportionately affects older children.

7. Suicide figures for young people remain stubbornly high.

rcpch.ac.uk

While the number of deaths for a range of conditions and diseases are reducing year-on-year, the number of children and young people who die from suicide and self-harm each year has stubbornly refused to budge in 34 years - since 1980.

Suicide is a major issue among young men, while self-harm is a major issue among young women.

We also know that half of lifetime mental illnesses are in place by the age of 14 with three-quarters in place by age 21.

8. And yet mental health services for young people are being drastically reduced.

kingsfund.org.uk

Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (or CAMHS) have been cut so drastically that they're now entirely reactive and then only in the most severe cases.

So what now?

rcpch.ac.uk

The Royal College of Paediatrics & Child Health and the National Children's Bureau have come up with 34 recommendations on how to reduce the number of deaths in children and young people.

It's now up to politicians to implement them.