"If a disease were killing our children in the proportions that injuries are,
people would be outraged and demand that this killer be stopped." (Former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, M.D.)

More children die from injuries than from all childhood diseases and other causes combined. This is true in Humboldt County as well as nationwide. For children ages 14 and younger, injury is the leading cause of death, medical spending in the United States, the second leading cause of hospitalization, and the leading cause of emergency department visits. (Please visit the Health Education Injury Prevention Program.)

In Humboldt County, between 1991 and 2004, 275 children, youth, and young adults ages 0-24 died and 2916 were hospitalized as a result of unintentional injuries and intentional firearm injuries (homicide and suicide). For the years 2002-2004, Humboldt County ranked 55th worst out of California’s 58 counties in unintentional injuries for all ages.

Statistical data, as well as findings from the Humboldt County Child Death Review Team, prompted the Team to recommend the creation of an injury prevention subcommittee. In 1998 the Humboldt County Injury Prevention Subcommittee began meeting to consider ways to reduce the number and severity of injuries to Humboldt County’s children. In 2001, the Maternal, Child, and Adolescent Health Division (MCAH) of the Humboldt County Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Branch obtained funding and hired a coordinator to plan and implement a Childhood Injury Prevention Program (CIPP).

In its first year, the CIPP focused heavily on strategic planning efforts - establishing a childhood injury prevention coalition, compiling local data, conducting a community assessment, researching effective interventions, and developing recommendations for prevention interventions. These efforts resulted in Humboldt County’s "Childhood Injury Prevention Strategic Plan". This plan will guide the activities of the CIPP over the coming years, and is also intended to serve as a resource for all interested in addressing childhood injury in the County. Local stakeholders should find the plan useful as a data source and a baseline for measuring progress.

During 2002, in recognition of the fact that motor vehicle crashes were the leading cause of death and injuries in Humboldt County, the CIPP applied for and received a two-year grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety. The "Child Passenger Safety Program" was developed and works to increase child safety seat use among families of children ages 0-6, and to decrease the number of seats that are installed incorrectly. Some of the program activities include awarding child safety seats to qualified agencies for distribution, conducting child safety seat checkups to promote correct usage, and training community providers on proper use and installation of child safety/booster seats.

In 2005 the CIPP applied for and received funding to address "youth driving", the second highest concern identified in the strategic plan. For information on the youth driving program, click here.

Moving ahead, efforts will include continued data surveillance to refine our understanding of childhood injury in Humboldt County; continuing identification of prevention interventions that work; and design and implementation of prevention strategies tailored to local needs.

For more information on the Childhood Injury Prevention Program, call (707) 445-6210.