Verify the history of child death "CDR" to prevent the recurrence of abuse and accidents November 13, 7:50
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An initiative to investigate the circumstances leading up to the death of a child in detail and prevent recurrence has begun in Gunma Prefecture as a national model project.
Persons in charge of hospitals and police held their first meeting on the 12th, and confirmed that they would proceed with verification of cases where the cause of death was not clear and would make recommendations within this year.
Efforts to verify the circumstances leading up to the death of a child and prevent the recurrence of abuse and accidents are called "CDR = Child Death Review", and the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is aiming to introduce the system in seven prefectures from this year. We are doing a model business at.
Of these, the first meeting was held in Maebashi City on the 12th in Gunma Prefecture, and about 20 people from hospitals, police, and local governments attended.
At the meeting, opinions were exchanged on the cases of 48 children under the age of 18 who died in Gunma prefecture from April to September last year.
According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, about 3,800 children under the age of 18 died in the last year, and the rate of "accidents" such as suffocation and drowning is higher than that of adults.
In Gunma Prefecture, we would like to examine in detail the circumstances leading up to the death, focusing on "unexpected accidents" and cases where the cause of death is not clear, and make recommendations to prevent recurrence within this fiscal year.
Dr. Fumitake Mizoguchi of Maebashi Red Cross Hospital, who is promoting the business at the center, said, "There is a high possibility that the death of a child due to an accident or abuse can be prevented with support or countermeasures at some stage. We would like to carefully verify and establish a mechanism to prevent recurrence. "
What is "CDR = Child Death Review"?
The "Child Death Review = CDR" is a system for investigating the process leading up to the death of a child and using it to prevent recurrence.
In CDR, medical institutions, police, child guidance centers, local governments, etc. collaborate to share detailed information on the time of life, such as the family environment, living conditions, and medical history, in addition to the situation when the child died. ..
After that, we will verify at what point and what kind of support and measures were needed to prevent the death of the child, and make recommendations for preventing recurrence.
In Japan, when a child dies for reasons other than illness, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare for abuse, the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology for school accidents, and other ministries and agencies are conducting investigations depending on the case.
However, there is no mechanism for investigating the deaths of all children, and cases such as cases where sufficient verification is not conducted and cases where abusive deaths are overlooked have been regarded as problems.
According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, "We believe that more effective recurrence prevention measures can be taken by examining all deaths of children under the age of 18 across ministries and agencies."
What is the status of efforts in Japan?
CDR started in the United States about 40 years ago, and in Japan, a research group of the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare has been working toward institutionalization for four years.
However, in Japan, information about the death of a child is highly confidential, and due to consideration for the emotions of the bereaved family, the difficulty of sharing information with related organizations has become a major issue.
Under these circumstances, the "Basic Law for Child Health and Development" that came into effect in December last year included the establishment of a system for the national government to collect and utilize information on the causes of death of children.
Based on this, the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare is conducting model projects for system building in seven prefectures this year: Gunma and Yamanashi, Mie, Kyoto, Shiga, Kagawa, and Kochi.
The Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, washed out the problems through this business, consider the collection and sharing of the way of consideration information to the bereaved family to the prospect of the 2022 fiscal year, we intend to developing systems that can verify a history of up to children to death ..
Bereaved family who lost their child in an accident "To prevent recurrence"
The bereaved families who lost their children in the accident have been calling for a series of investigations that go into the background of the accident to prevent recurrence.
Yasuhiro I * (46) from Yamato City, Kanagawa Prefecture, died in a pool accident at a kindergarten where his eldest son, Takahiro, who was three years old at the time, was passing by in July 2011, nine years ago.
In addition to the police investigation, the accident was also investigated by the Consumer Affairs Agency's Safety Investigation Committee, the so-called consumer accident investigation.
According to Mr. Ire, as a result of the investigation, it was found that the teacher who was present while playing in the pool of the kindergarten drowned while taking his eyes off.
Mr. Ire said about the situation at that time, "I noticed when I got an email from my wife. When I arrived at the hospital, Takahiro was receiving a heart massage, and at that time I heard from the teacher," Honestly, I can't help anymore. " I didn't know if it was. "
At home, there is still a photo of Takahiro smiling with his parents in the living room.
There are also "Anpanman" vehicles and train toys that are popular with young children, and Mr. Ire said, "I can't throw it away because I think my son is sad."
After the accident, Mr. Ire is also working to prevent recurrence, such as participating in a study session on "Child Death Review = CDR" with other bereaved families.
While I have high expectations for the system, I also feel the current issues based on my own experience.
Mr. Ire said, "There are variations in the police's response to the bereaved family, and if this is not shared, it will not be used for future measures. In my case, the actual situation of the kindergarten will not be investigated in detail until I am satisfied. It would have been nice to know what happened in the background, such as the teacher's emergency response and how to be careful on a daily basis, "he said, and the fact that there was a temperature difference in the attitudes of police and government agencies depending on the region and the background of the accident. I'm worried if I can do an in-depth investigation.
On top of that, "I regret every time a child's accident is repeated. By knowing the truth, the bereaved family gradually accepts the truth and tries to move forward. It also helps prevent recurrence. What I and my wife experienced at that time I don't want anyone to experience it. "
* For "Rei", "Show" is "Ne".
Research group member "It is necessary to consider how to handle information"
In "CDR", related organizations such as hospitals and police share and verify information on child death, but the problem is that it does not proceed smoothly from the viewpoint of protecting personal information.
According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, it is legally legal to provide or collect personal information of children for CDR, but there are restrictions on the regulations of each local government and hospital rules, and the feelings of the bereaved family. Many related organizations hesitate to provide information due to consideration.
Dr. Fumitake Mizoguchi of Maebashi Red Cross Hospital, who is a member of the national research group and is promoting a model project in Gunma prefecture, said, "There is also a view of life and death peculiar to Japan that I do not want to handle the death further. The confidentiality of information on child death is high and difficult to collect. Through the model project, we will spread the recognition that CDR is necessary to protect the lives of children in the future, and in the future, legislation will be established regarding the handling of information. We will need to consider it. "