Govt urged to fund shaken baby scheme

New Children's Commissioner John Angus is urging the Government to fund the internationally successful Shaken Baby Prevention Programme in a drive to reduce alarming child abuse figures.

Auckland District Health Board is considering launching a pilot of the programme which could then be rolled out nationwide.

Commenting on the release of a new report into the maltreatment of young people in New Zealand, Mr Angus said efforts to prevent the tragic deaths of children must not be allowed to slow down.

The report, Death and Serious Injury from Assault of Children under five years in Aotearoa New Zealand was commissioned by the Office of the Children's Commissioner and reviewed risk factors for death and injury from abuse in New Zealand and worldwide.

It found that one child is admitted to hospital each week in New Zealand as a result of child abuse.

Over half (58 per cent) of the abused children admitted to hospital were under one, and 77 per cent were under the age of two.

"Their vulnerability means that almost all forms of assault can lead to serious injury and death," Mr Angus said.

"It only takes a small slap to the head or a short shake of a baby to do real harm."

The report found babies were at particular risk when left in the care of young men who were not their biological fathers.

The Shaken Baby Prevention Programme targets parents of newborns to give them information about infants' vulnerability to brain injury and to teach them how to deal with the frustration of a baby crying inconsolably.

Other findings of the report include:

* Between 1995 and 2004, 51 children under five died as a result of assault, two-thirds of them were aged under two;

* Of 57 homicide deaths of children under five between 1991 and 2000, the father was the killer in 18 cases, the mother in 14 cases, and a de facto partner in 15 cases;

* Maori boys are six times more likely to be seriously assaulted, and Maori girls three times more likely than non-Maori;

* Children with mothers under the age of 17 are significantly more likely to be fatally abused or seriously injured as a result of abuse;

* Parental alcohol consumption was "present" in a third of the deaths of children under five;

* Compounding factors include a previous history of violence, impending parental separation, and a lack of antenatal care.

Mr Angus described the statistics as "distressing".

He said he intended to use his time as commissioner to ensure that information such as that in the report was used effectively by health, education and child protection agencies.

The report's findings were backed by the Paediatric Society, which yesterday told parliament's health select committee New Zealand had the worst rates of child death and injury from preventable causes in the developed world.

Capital and Coast paediatric surgeon Brendon Bowkett told the committee hospitals were being squeezed by epidemics of infectious diseases associated with poverty and overcrowding.

That led to the cancellation of non-urgent but nevertheless important operations that all children should be able to receive.

- NZPA