Local Essay

College of Western Idaho
Child Mortality Rates
Jennifer Helmick
English 102-011W
Leslie Jewkes
3/12/13

Abstract

My research shows what solutions there are to child mortality rates in the United States. To obtain these results interviews, databases, books and the web have all helped. The research explains the major causes of death and how those situations can also be prevented.The large implications of my findings were that the mortality rates are continually decreasing.


Jennifer Helmick
jenniferhelmick@mycwi.cc
English 102
Local Paper Final
21 February 2013 

   Child Mortality Rates 

            Child mortality rates are not specifically seen as a large problem in the United States. Child deaths are less common here than in other countries, but they still occur. I think this problem goes unnoticed because there are already plenty of resolutions to solve the issue. Child mortality rates have continued to go down but some deaths are still occurring. Even though this issue is better known globally it still occurs in the U.S. There are plenty of different solutions to decrease child mortality rates in the United States that must be noticed.
            Ties Boerma says that, “Increased commitment to tracking progress in child mortality has drawn attention to a number of interrelated technical, operational and political challenges and to the underlying weaknesses of health information systems in many countries”(1). Research has stated that mortality rates for infants and children are a significant display of a state’s health status. The amount of child deaths in one year is 53,287 of these deaths 30,000 are children from 0-1 (Spiliopoulou). The death rate has continued to diminish over the years with the help of many organizations. Some of these include the UNOPS and the UNICEF. These groups are in partnerships with the government. The UNICEF tries to find cost friendly interventions to reduce the number of deaths. Even though there is plenty being done the catastrophe of preventable death still happens. According to Szarkowski, “some 22,000 children under five still die each day, with some 70 percent of those deaths occurring in the first year of the child’s life”(3). Of course all deaths cannot be stopped completely, but there is still a chance the number of rates could be lower in future years.
            If there is a situation that is stoppable then the result of the problem should not develop a concern. “However we must remain vigilant if we are to reach the end goal of zero dying from preventable causes. The unnecessary death of even one child is unacceptable,” says President and CEO of the U.S. Fund for UNICEF Caryl System. If all that can be done occurs then the death rate will be able to diminish. People think that “freak accidents” happen, but if the situation is studied there will be a way this accident could have been stopped. If a parent lets their children drive when the weather conditions are dangerous there will be a chance of death arising. Regardless of the remarkable reduction in child mortality, racial, socioeconomic and geographic differences continue to be substantial, black children experience 50 percent higher risk that white (Singh). People need to see situations differently and take all options into consideration (Walker).
            The main factor of infant mortality in the United States is when babies are born with an abnormally low weight. It is common for newborns to lose pounds after they are born and if they do not have any weight to spare this can result in fatality. The main causes of death include: perinatal conditions, repertory disease, circulatory disease, nervous system disease, and SIDS. Natural causes can be difficult to prevent but with medical advances these issues are being solved. The other unintentional deaths contain: motor vehicle accidents, drowning, fire/burn, poisoning, suffocation and firearm (National Center for Health Statistics). Unintentional deaths seem to be one of the main problems with child mortality rates. The people in the environment should take more caution into everyday activities to protect their own children and others.             According to Gopal K. Singh, “Unintentional injuries, cancer, birth defects, homicide, heart disease, and suicide were the leading causes of death in older children aged 5-14, accounting for 70 percent of all deaths in 07, 37 percent of these deaths were motor vehicle accidents”(3). It is interesting that car accidents lead the death rate for younger children. This shows that the death of the child is someone else’s responsibility. It is sad when innocent children have to die because of another person’s reckless actions. It is a parent’s job to keep their children safe and statistics show that in some cases they are not doing a good job. There are many different reasons that tie in with child mortality; some of these would possibly be environmental conditions, parent’s level of education, and even political and medical infrastructure (Cullen).            Research is an astounding factor that helps people see different perspectives. According to Gopal, “the vast majority of research conducted in the late 20^th century and early 21^st century indicates that African American infants are more than twice as likely to die in their first year of life, than are white infants”(2). This could be occurring because of the different social classes in the U.S. Since the declining rate of child mortality has been due to medical advances, technology, and modern improvements in basic healthcare it is mostly revolving around money. In this generation money is hard to come by. How do citizens get the care they need if they cannot afford it? “1,551 mothers were interviewed, ethnicity was listed as follows: 854 native-born white, 6 African American, 394 Slovak or Polish, 76 Serbo-Croatian, 75 Italian, 53 German, 38 Magyar, 33 British, 12 Syrian and Greek, and 10 Hebrew. Children with a native born mother had a much better chance of survival than did those of foreign mothers” (Lindenmeyer 59). This experiment stood out to me because it shows how vastly spread out child mortality rates is. Native born children have a better chance of survival because their mothers are from this society so they know how it works. On the other hand, foreign people sometimes do not receive the kind of help native people do.
            Ongoing investigations and statistics of different health care costs and delivery help to understand what conditions contribute to mortality rates. Cullen states that, “racial disparities in care between whites and blacks have highlighted the role of these factors” (1). Even though it is still unknown if these ideas actually affect rates it is to see how they could.  According to Dr. Mumford, a local family physician, most child deaths are from disease. He says parents do not take their children’s sickness seriously and it leads to worse conditions. The right thing to do would be to bring the child in for care as soon as symptoms are visible (Mumford). The high rate of teen pregnancy seems like it plays a larger role. Babies are having babies and do not have the responsibility to take care of them. Tobacco, alcohol and the use of drugs by woman expecting is also a factor. Careless actions such as these end in a larger problem by having children who need special care. The more special care that this child needs, the more money the mother is going to have to come up with. People do not take into consideration that what they do to their body can be harming to themselves but most importantly their baby.            The National Institute of Child Health & Human Development has made large strides in lowering the child mortality rate. Since this institution has evolved the national mortality rate has diminished to 70 percent due to their contributing investigations. The death rates dropped between 1980 and 2003. This includes 46% for infants, ages 1-4 44%, and ages 5-14 32% decrease in death. Spiliopoulou indicates that, “The fact worth mentioning is that all rates have tended to decline steadily since they were first documented in the 1930’s.”(1) The rates of decrease do depend on the city and the environment.  The world is evolving and technology is helping tremendously in the effort to save lives. On the positive side, the United States announced a 26 percent decrease in neonatal deaths over twenty years. Yet, it has unfortunately dropped to the lowest positions from 28^th to the 41^st. Since the neonate progress has occurred slower than newborn and older babies less than five years old supports the notion that good data leads to awareness, and awareness leads to actions (Shore). If others are aware that situations are getting better they will confident in supporting the fight against child mortality.
            Monitoring changes in the health and well-being of children is one of the most important goals of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. When children are monitored it is easier to get the data needed to improve lives. Giving kids the fundamentals for a healthy and safe childhood will reduce mortality rates. The mission is to make that number zero by doing all there is to do. There are a sufficient amount of fundraisers and organizations that contribute to helping families and children in need. Reasons responsible for a long-term decline include: better living conditions, developments in medical care, healthier nutrition, and lastly the introduction of Medicaid (Singh). To make more progress health sponsors plan on distributing antibiotics to fight diseases in the developing countries. Miller states, “To reach the goal of a mortality rate of 9/1000 requires implementation of public policies that include assured access to comprehensive perinatal care, promised maternity leave, and cash benefits equal to significant portions of wages during the time off”(2). Public policies have the chance to make a huge difference in the fight against child mortality. The more help received from others can eventually have a larger impact on the whole problem.            The encouraging fact is that both infant and child mortality tend to decline steadily in most countries, even the least developed. Although this decrease is not proportional and the rates depend on variables such as race and ethnicity, environmental, and genetic reasons (Spiliopoulou). The age and gender of a child can also be an important variable. The death of a child is a tragedy for family and friends, and a loss to the community. Unintentional injuries and disease can and will be prevented if the right measures are taken. Lives could be saved with vaccines, basic medical and maternal care, and likewise suitable nutrition. There are always fundraisers and programs taking donations to help save the lives of those in need. The world has plenty of technology and what needs to be done is obvious. The goal is to make all of these options available to every child. 

Works Cited

Cullen, Mark R, Clint Cummins, and Victor R Fuchs. "Geographic And Racial Variation In Premature Mortality In The U.S.: Analyzing The Disparities." Plos One 7.4 (2012): e32930. MEDLINE. Web. 15 Feb. 2013.

Lindenmeyer, Kriste. "The U.S. Children's Bureau and Infant Mortality in the Progressive Era." Journal of Education. 177.3 (1995): 57-69. Print.Miller, CA. "Infant Mortality in the U.S." Scientific American. 253.1 (1985): 31-7. Print.

Mumford, Brett. Personal interview. 15 Feb. 2013. 

Ramage, John D., John C. Bean, and June Johnson. Writing Arguments: A Rhetoric with Readings. 9th ed. Boston: Pearson Education, 2012. Print.

Shore, Rima, Barbara Shore, and Foundation Annie E. Casey. "Reducing The Child Death Rate. KIDS COUNT Indicator Brief." Annie E. Casey Foundation (2009): ERIC. Web. 15 Feb. 2013.

Singh GK. Child Mortality in the United States, 1935-2007: Large Racial and Socioeconomic Disparities Have Persisted Over Time. A 75th Anniversary Publication. Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Bureau.Rockville, Maryland: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; 2010.

Spiliopoulou, et al. "Trends In Infant And Child Mortality." Open Forensic Science Journal 4.(2011): 1-11. Academic Search Complete. Web. 15 Feb. 2013.

Szarkowski, Lisa. "Child Mortality Rate Drops by a Third since 1990." :: UNICEF USA. N.p., 16 Sept. 2010. Web. 15 Feb. 2013.

Ties Boerma, et al. “Tracking Progress Towards The Millennium Development Goals: Reaching Consesus On Child Mortality Levels and Trends.” Bulletin Of The World Health Organization 84.3 (2006): 225-232.  Academic Search Complete.Web. 12 Mar. 2013  

Walker, Jade. "U.S. Mortality Rate: Deaths Surpass 2.5 Million For The First Time." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 10 Oct. 2012. Web. 15 Feb. 2013.