1. Child injury prevention in the Czech Republic Child injury prevention in the Czech Republic Press conference 18 June 2008 Ministry of Health, Prague Dr Dinesh Sethi Violence and Injury Prevention WHO Regional Office for Europe European Centre for Environment and Health

2. The burden of injuries among children Injuries leading cause of death 27 900 children under 15 died from injuries Equivalent to 3 children an hour Road traffic injuries leading cause in 5-18 y Intentional injuries cause 3200 deaths (11.5%) Inequalities in countries: socially deprived children 3-4 times higher mortality

3. There is a huge gap between eastern and western Europe Source: WHO, Health for All database, 2007

4. Develop national plans Improve national surveillance Strengthen national capacity Prioritize research in primary prevention and trauma care Promote good practice Support network of focal points for VIP Public health framework for action proposed by WHO and EC adopted by Member States

5. There are many cost effective interventions 1 € spent on smoke alarmsSaves € 69 1 € spent on child safety seatsSaves € 32 1 € spent on bicycle helmetsSaves € 29 1 € spent on road safety improvementsSaves € 3 1 € spent on prevention counselling by paediatricians Saves € 10 1 € spent on poison control servicesSaves € 7 1 € spent on universal licensing of handguns Saves € 79 1 € spent on home visitation and parent education against child abuse Saves € 19 If European Region had same child death rate as Sweden, then 14 700 deaths or 3 of 4 deaths would be avoided

6. Key points for action 1.National plan in Czech Republic for children 2.National data collection on size of problem and to identify what are the risk factors 3.Tackle leading causes and risk factors 4.Implement what works for prevention 5.Consistent with WHO recommendations for multisectoral action 6.WHO is working with MoH and others through its biennial collaboration 7.MoH has initiated discussions with WHO on establishing a centre of excellence in Czech Republic More information and publications on safety in Europe: http://www.euro.who.int/violenceinjury © WHO/N. Di Tanno

7. Child unintentional unintentional injury standardised death rates per 100 000 0-19 years