Children deserve to live in a safer world – Unintentional injuries in children

Abstract

Improvement in the health status of children over the last 50 – 100 years has been spectacular. This was because of targeted interventions carried out to combat infectious diseases and nutritional deficiencies. However, injury remains a threat to the health and wellbeing of children and is recognised as a major killer of children worldwide. There are factors that make children particularly susceptible to injuries. The fact that child injuries are predictable and preventable is not well understood by many. Awareness building is therefore vital. Prevention of child injury requires the involvement and commitment of a broad group of agencies.