Child Injury Prevention

The Perry County Health Department has been awarded a Child Injury Prevention grant through the Ohio Department of Health, funded October 1, 2023 – September 30, 2027. Haley Randolph is the grant coordinator and can be reached at 740-721-0860.

The Ohio Child Injury Prevention Program is focused on preventable injuries for Ohioans ages 0–18 related to occupant protection (car/booster seats, teen driving), concussions (sports and safe active transportation), child maltreatment, and youth suicide.

Why It Matters

  • Every day in the United States, more than 28,000 youth ages 19 and younger are injured seriously enough to require emergency medical treatment — more than 10 million each year.
  • Each year in the U.S., more than 17,000 youth ages 19 and younger die as a result of injury (22.5 per 100,000); more than 630 die in Ohio (20.0 per 100,000).
  • Injuries have been the leading cause of death in children for nearly 40 years.
  • During the next year, one in four children will suffer an injury requiring medical attention.
  • As many as 90 percent of unintentional injuries can be prevented.

Children are not small adults. They are developmentally, anatomically, and physiologically different from adults — and these differences place them at greater risk for injury and affect its severity.

Perry County's Focus Areas

Child Passenger Safety

  • Motor vehicle injuries are a leading cause of death for children, but many of these deaths can be prevented with the appropriate car seats, booster seats, and seat belts.
  • Car seat use reduces the risk of death by 71% for infants younger than age 1 and by 54% for toddlers aged 1–4 in passenger vehicles.
  • Booster seat use reduces the risk of serious injury by 45% for children aged 4–8 compared with seat belt use alone.

Youth Violence & Child Maltreatment

Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) and promoting Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs). ACEs are potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood (ages 0–17), for example:

  • experiencing violence, abuse, or neglect
  • witnessing violence in the home or community
  • having a family member attempt or die by suicide

Also included are aspects of a child's environment that can undermine their sense of safety, stability, and bonding — such as growing up in a household with:

  • substance use problems
  • mental health problems
  • instability due to parental separation, or household members in jail or prison
  • not having enough food to eat
  • experiencing homelessness or unstable housing
  • experiencing discrimination

ACEs are linked to chronic health problems, mental illness, and substance use problems in adolescence and adulthood, and can negatively impact education, job opportunities, and earning potential.

ACEs are common

  • About 64% of U.S. adults reported experiencing at least one type of ACE before age 18, and nearly 1 in 6 (17.3%) reported experiencing four or more types.

However, ACEs can be prevented. Creating and sustaining safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments for all children and families can prevent ACEs and help every child reach their full potential.