Annual report 2009-2010, NT Child Deaths Review and Prevention Committee
NT Child Deaths Review and Prevention Committee annual report 2009-2010
Office of the Children's Commissioner Northern Territory
E-Publications; PublicationNT; E-Books; The Children's Commissioner Northern Territory annual report; Annual reports
2010
Date:2010; Made available via the Publications (Legal Deposit) Act 2004 (NT).
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Children, Aboriginal Australian; Northern Territory; Periodicals; Death; Causes; Statistics; Periodicals; Children and death; Periodicals
Northern Territory Government
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The Children's Commissioner Northern Territory annual report; Annual reports
2009-2010
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Northern Territory Government
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https://hdl.handle.net/10070/236802
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/640686
Page 12 In addition, 37 stillbirths were registered and occurred in the NT: (19 (51%) males, 17 (46%) females, 1 (3%) unknown, 22 (59%) Aboriginal, 15 (41%) non-Aboriginal). There were 18 NT neonatal deaths: (13 (70%) Aboriginal, 5 (30%) non-Aboriginal) and 55 NT perinatal deaths: (35 (65%) Aboriginal, 20 (35%) non-Aboriginal that were registered either in the NT or other jurisdictions. 2006-2009 Aggregate Snapshot Over four years there were 204 NT resident child deaths registered in the NT or other jurisdictions: (115 (57%) males, 88 (43%) females, 150 (74%) Aboriginal, 53 (26%) non-Aboriginal). There were 117 infant deaths that were 57% of all child deaths. Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal NT child death rates were 139 and 39 per 100,000 respectively and a combined rate of 82. Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal infant death rates were 13.3 and 3.7 per 1,000 live births respectively and a combined rate of 7.7. The leading Underlying Causes of Death (UCOD) in NT children were Perinatal Conditions (32%), External Causes (26%) and Congenital Malformations (11%). 140 stillbirths were registered and occurred in the NT: (64 (46%) males, 73 (51%) females, 3 (2%) unknown, 93 (66%) Aboriginal, 47 (34%) non-Aboriginal). There was a total of 77 NT neonatal deaths: (54 (70%) Aboriginal, 23 (30%) nonAboriginal) and 217 NT perinatal deaths: (147 (68%) Aboriginal, 70 (32%) nonAboriginal) that were registered either in the NT or other jurisdictions. Research Chapter 6 of this Report provides details on CDRPCs research activities. The Committee, along with Health Gains Planning (HGP) branch of the Department of Health and Families (DHF), has undertaken the co-sponsorship of research into Aboriginal fetal and infant deaths. The main focus of the research is to explore whether the reduction in Aboriginal fetal deaths has contributed to the lack of reduction in Aboriginal infant deaths. The Committee will provide HGP with its perinatal information to assist with the research. A preliminary comparative analysis was conducted on hanging deaths in the NT, Qld and NSW, due to the high numbers of these deaths observed by the Committee. The analysis indicated that the rate in the NT is 5 times and up to 13 times higher compared to Qld and NSW respectively. This analysis will provide a focus for research by the Committee. Summary of Key Findings There are several major findings from the data on child deaths in the NT that give cause for serious concern: 1. Death rates for children in the NT are high in comparison with the other states and territories, in particular, infant death rates. 2. About 43% of all NT children are Aboriginal but represent around 73% of the child deaths. Aboriginal children are 3.5 times more likely to die during childhood. 3. The leading Underlying Causes of Death in the 2006-2009 period were Perinatal Conditions (32%), External Causes (26%) and Congenital Malformations (11%). Perinatal Conditions and Congenital Malformations were the underlying causes for a