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).
English
Children, Aboriginal Australian; Northern Territory; Periodicals; Death; Causes; Statistics; Periodicals; Children and death; Periodicals
Northern Territory Government
Casuarina
The Children's Commissioner Northern Territory annual report; Annual reports
2009-2010
application/pdf
Attribution International 4.0 (CC BY 4.0)
Northern Territory Government
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/236802
https://hdl.handle.net/10070/640686
Page 19 maintained an interim Child Deaths Register to fulfil the Committees statutory requirements. The Committee commissioned a private entity to establish a specifications report and database architecture relevant to the NTs Child Death Registers specific needs. This has been completed however, there are minor issues that the Committee are still considering regarding the structure of the database. Preliminary estimates have also been formulated to construct this database and negotiations have begun with Government to fund this one off cost. Even though establishment of the permanent Child Deaths Register is taking longer than the initial projections, the Committee understands the potential cost associated in developing this database. It is therefore determined to thoroughly canvas all apparent issues with the database before committing to a particular model, in order to minimise any potential amendments to the architecture of the Register that would bear future costs. The Committee hopes to finalise the permanent Child Deaths Register in this coming year. Even though the development of the Child Deaths Register remains incomplete for this reporting year, the Committee has expanded the data kept on the interim Child Deaths Register and expanded the linkage of the NT BDM Registry data with that of information held by other entities such as the Coroner and many public and private health facilities. With the ability to obtain this in-depth information, the Committee was able to precisely identify the underlying causes of death and causes of death related to the deaths of the children contained in the database and catalogue them consistent with the International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems, Tenth Revision Australian Modified (ICD-10 AM) standard classification. The data presented in Chapter 5 of this Report is based on the interim Child Deaths Register. This Register was developed to help with the capture and analysis of the NT BDM Registry data, as well as the integrated data from other related sources, to not only validate data supplied by the NT BDM Registry but also provide more context for child deaths in the years 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009. Other Issues Confidentiality of Information The Act contains provisions relating to the confidentiality of information obtained by members of the Committee. It is considered an offence under the Act for a member to disclose information, to use information obtained as part of their role on the CDRPC, or to undertake an action that results in the disclosure of information. The Act does however, allow for disclosure of information for the purposes of research, as part of an inquiry or investigation conducted by the Police or Coroner, to a court or tribunal, or if otherwise required or authorised by law. The Committee understands the highly sensitive nature of the information that it holds and all of its members have been informed about their obligations as members to the Committee when they are undertaking duties associated with the Committee. The Committee has developed policy regarding the use, disclosure and handling of this sensitive information. Future members to the Committee will be provided this policy along with a copy of the NT Governments Guide for Members of Northern Territory Government Boards, Committees and Statutory Bodies on commencement of their appointment. This will provide a basis on which members can understand their statutory obligations. Coding Cause of Death The NT uses ICD-10 AM to code Underlying Cause of Death and Causes of Death. This standard of classification has been approved by the World Health Organisation and is used