Every Child Counts: The Global Reality of Child Survival

Abstract

<P>Why should we as primary care practitioners review the topic of global child health? It’s certainly not a topic of primary concern in our day-to-day life. We focus on providing care to children in our local healthcare facilities in the industrialized world. But hopefully this presentation of the statistics of global child mortality will make it clear why we, as advocates for children and child health, need to understand what is going on with the health of the majority of the world’s children. Increased travel and migration will bring these children and their health problems to our local practices. Additionally, travelers from the United States to other countries are increasingly exposed to diseases now rarely seen in the United States, as witnessed by the increased number of measles outbreaks (due to imported measles) in the United States in recent years. We should be concerned about providing the 90% of the world’s children who live in developing countries with the care necessary to have an adequate chance to grow and become mature members of society, and we should treat all children equitably. Supporting child and maternal health is an investment in a safer and more secure world.</P> <H4>ABOUT THE AUTHOR</H4><P>Barbara Oettgen, MD, MPH, is Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Children’s Hospital of Michigan, Wayne State University School of Medicine, Detroit.</P> <P>Address correspondence to: Barbara Oettgen, MD, MPH, CATCH Pediatric Mobile Team, Children’s Hospital of Michigan, Carl’s Building, 5th Floor, 3901 Beaubien, Detroit, MI 48201; fax 313-993-7124; or e-mail <a href="mailto:aoettgen@dmc.org">aoettgen@dmc.org</a>.</P> <P>Dr. Oettgen has disclosed no relevant financial relationships.</P> <H4>EDUCATIONAL OBJECTIVES</H4> <OL> <LI>Review the statistics of child morbidity and mortality and the current regional inequities in these statistics.</LI> <LI>Review the history of child public health and progress that has been made in reducing child mortality, and articulate the goals for continued amelioration of child morbidity and mortality.</LI> <LI>Identify the major causes of global child mortality, especially the large role played by neonatal mortality and infectious diseases and which interventions are potentially effective to decrease mortality.</LI> </OL>