July-September 2006 Quarterly Newsletter Volume 4, Issue 3 "The Review" Office of Child Fatality Review Congratulations to the 2005 CFR County and CFR Coroner of the Year!! The Office of Child Fatality Review would like to congratulate the Clayton County CFR Team and the Catoosa County Coroner for a job well done! The CFR Panel voted to award the 2005 CFR County of the Year Award to the Clayton County team. They have performed an outstandingjob as a team, consistently submittingthorough and timely reports to the Office by holding regular review meetings to discuss child deaths. Although the team has experienced significant leadership changes throughout the 2005 year, they were able to successfully work through the transitions and their newest members are just as committed to reviewing, reporting and preventing child deaths. The team also sponsors a regular Summer Safety Event for child safety awareness at their local Wal-Mart, which receives local media attention. Vanita Hullander is the Catoosa County Coroner and the winner of the 2005 CFR Coroner of the Year Award. Vanita is a member of the State CFR Panel and is on the Executive Committee for the Georgia Coroner's Association. She is very active in the Meth Task Force, and has taken great initiative in educating her community on the methamphetamine epidemic and other child fatality issues. Through her work on the State Panel, she has fostered a better working relationship between coroners and the CFR Panel. We would also like to congratulate the runners-up: Douglas County CFR team and Grover "Mickey" Barfield, Macon County Coroner. The Office salutes all county teams and coroners for their tireless efforts in investigating, reviewing and reporting child deaths, and we appreciate all that you do for prevention!! Summer Safety Tipsfor Parents, Caregivers and Communities! July 2006: Fireworks Safety Month Take the time to educate young children and teens on safe behaviors around explo- sives. Consumer fireworks are not toys and should not be handled by children (National Council on Fireworks Safety). August 2006: Eye Injury Prevention Month I Ninety percent of eye injuries are preventable. The leading causes of eye injuries Inside this issue include sports accidents, consumer fireworks, household chemicals and battery acid, as well as workshop and yard debris (American Academy of Ophthalmology). Congratulations! 1 September 2006: Baby Safety Month Summer Safety Tips 1 Ask local retailers to sponsor a safety seminar or photo contest to publicize babysafe products and promotions (Juvenile Products Manufacturers Association). CFR Training Season 2 National ChildhoodInjury Prevention Week (Sept. 1-7) Good-bye to our Staff 2 Encourage local families to implement simple prevention measures in the home and to supervise children more closely to protect them fiom common household injuries Panel Profile Page 3 Suicide Prevention Week (Sept. 10-16) Success Stories 3 Ask your mayor to issue a proclamation to declare suicide prevention week in your area; hold a memorial candlelight ceremony or a "walk for life" event Prevention Efforts 3 (www.yel1owribbon.org). Upcoming Events 4 "Thank You" to all whoparticipated in the CFRAnnual Training The 2006 CFR training season began on April 6 in White County. Twelve weeks later, we have provided investigation, prosecution, and prevention training to 667 members statewide, including 43 coroners or deputy coroners, 2 CFR Panel members, 7 district attorneys and one state legislator. The training presenters included: Beoncia Loveless, a medico-legal investigator with the Georgia G e a u of Investigations; Rachelle Carnesale, director bf the child Fatality Investigation Team program; Kim Washington, Child Health Prevention Specialist with the Division of Public Health; and several Family Connection collaborative representatives. Beoncia Loveless presented a 2-hour course on investigating youth suicides, and included a significant educational piece on the "choking game" and autoerotic hanging deaths among adolescents and teens. All committee members are now more aware of the dangers of the "choking game" and how to recognize children who might be involved in this dangerous activity. Because "accidental asphyxia" deaths are difficult for parents and communities to comprehend, this course provided attendees with resources to take back and share with others who need to know. Beoncia also provided attendees with tools to understand why teens commit suicide and how to discuss suicide prevention in the community. Rachelle Carnesale presented a 2-hour course on collaboration for child fatality investigations. Her background as a prosecutor for the DeKalb County District Attorney and as CFR Chair for that county gave her significant insight into why agencies need to work together in responding to child abuse and fatalities. Her presentation included specific responsibilities for DAs, DFCS, Law Enforcement, and Coroners who might have information on an abuse or fatality case. The immediate response time for CFIT members can help the investigation and prosecution tremendously, and makes it easier for CFR teams to recommend services to families and prevention within communities. Kim Washington presented a 60-minute course on recognizing prevention opportunities. Because there are many agencies who interact with families every day (law enforcement, DFCS, public health, DA investigators, juvenile court and mental health), there are many opportunities to mention hazards to children (in the home, in the yard, in the car, and other places). These small moments of conversation can save lives every day. She offered many prevention ideas, and highlighted common obstacles, that occur when initiating the conversations to help families identify hazards and other safety risks. The Family Connection Partnership recommended several speakers from regional collaboratives to attend our training classes. Because many CFR members work with their county FC Collaborative, it was a great addition to our class to have a discussion on the resources available to each county CFR team. Each county FCC is a clearinghouse for health and wellness resources, providing links to other agencies and groups who can help educate communities on child safety and injury, and they also participate in the statewide Kidscount Data Book (see www.aecf.or~idscount).We are grateful for the work that they do! "Goodbyeand Good Luck" to our Intern and Administrative Assistant! The CFR Office Intern, Brittney Bickham, is leaving at the end of June. She is a 2006 graduate of Marietta High School, and will be taking a brief summer break before leaving for college at Savannah State University to major in psychology. Although she was only with us for a few months, she has been a valuable asset to the office, helping with the training schedule and many other administrative duties. We wish her well in school and in life! Donna Mungin, our Administrative Assistant and keeper of all necessary information, will also be leaving at the end of June. She has been with the office for two years, and we have all come to depend on her heavily. She assists the director and the executive assistant with many responsibilities, and we wish her well in her future endeavors, wherever they may lead! -w. Page 2 CFR Panel Profle Page Carol Ball, Director of Georgia SAFE KIDS Coalitions Carol Ball serves as the Manager of Unintentional Injury at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta and as ' Executive Director for SAFE KIDS of Georgia. She has served as a board member to the Georgia Child Fatality Review Panel since 2002. Carol sincerel.y a-p-preciates the valuable time and effort that each committee member commits to the fatality review process, especially given the pressing demands placed upon committee members by their respective professions. CFR statistics show that unintentional injuries are still a leading cause of death for Georgia's children. This fact is a central concern for Carol. She is impressed that through the CFR process many communitieshave been mobilized to action and their achievements have resulted in a significant decrease in injuries and death. It is her hope that each committee will find the inspiration and energy to continue their efforts in providing accurate and detailed information, and to create community focused prevention activities. The success stories of Georgia's children We would like to congratulate all 2006 graduates of Georgia high schools, and commend you on your effort and achievements!! You've just reached a major goal and your futures are very bright! The CFR staff would like to recognize the positive events in children's lives, because much of our work deals with sadness from the loss of children. We know that CFR teams and communities have educated these teens on safe behaviors and protective environments, and hope that they take this information on to adulthood with them. We also hope that they educate their peers, and eventually become "prevention parents" to their own children! We wish all of the 2006 graduates a healthy, safe, and injury-free future! County Prevention Efforts in 2006 Fulton County Crawford Long Hospital is distributing brochures in their special care nursery about Shaken Baby Syndrome and child abuse prevention Forsyth County The Sheriffs Department is creating a memorial for a local high school that lists the names of children killed in motor vehicle incidents Paulding County The Boys and Girls Club distributed gun locks at their annual "End of School Year Bash" Liberty County CFR team distributed gun locks at their annual safety and prevention event and at their "National Night Out" event. Houston County Held several activities for Child Abuse Prevention Month, including a car seat check and proclamation signing Cobb County CFR team is participating in an Underage Drinking Task Force to reduce the numbers of teen deaths from wrecks and overdoses National initiative Research shows that about 50 children are backed over in parking lots and driveways per week, and of that number, at least two die. Federal lawmakers are considering a bill (the Cameron Gulbransen Kids and Cars Safety Act) which would require the DOT to establish rearvisibility standards on vehicles. Do you want to let others know about your successful investigation or prevention efforts? Take the time to educate all of us and send a short story about activities, events and programs in your county. We want to recognize all of your hard work in the next newsletter. We look forward to hearing from you! Together Everyone Achieves More Please submit your county's stories of success or other ideas by September 15,2006 to: The Office of Child Fatality Review 506 Roswell Street, Suite 230 Marietta, Georgia 30060 Phone: (770)528-3988 Fax: (.770.)528-3989 arahe ,,- ,",,~,-%~*,**, ,",>>"",",, ", Page 3 Upcoming Events July 9-11,2006: Prevent Child Abuse Georgia will Medicine will host their "Violence Prevention: host their 22nd Annual Symposium on child abuse Promoting Healthy Communities" conference. prevention and treatment at the Crowne Plaza Rav- Please call 404-756-8923 for more information. inia in Atlanta. Please visit their website at November 5-8,2006: Georgia Commission on www.preventchildabusena.org for more informa- Family Violence will host their Annual Confer- . tion. July 16-19,2006: Prosecuting Attorney Council of Georgia will host their 2006 Summer Conference at ence in Savannah. Please call 404-657-3412 for more information. The Georgia Alliance for Drug Endangered Chil- the Jekyll Island Convention Center. Please visit dren will sponsor several trainings for anyone in- their website at www.pacga.org for more informa- terested. Dates and locations vary (July- tion. October, statewide); please visit September 25-26,2006: Morehouse School of www.neorgiadec.org for more information. CFR Deadlines and Timelines July 1,2006: due date to submit your 2005 county Child Abuse Protocol annual report and your 2005 county Child Fatality Review committee annual report (i.e. agencies in attendance; number and types of deaths reviewed). Please contact the Office if you need assistance with these reports. July 31,2006: last day to submit your 2005 child death reports. All forms are available on our website at www.nacfr.dhr.neorgia.gov. We had a 99% compliance rate for 2004 child death reports, and we are aimingfor 100% thisyear! Please contact the Office if you are having trouble submittingreports online. ***** If you would like to receive this newsletter in your email inbox, or if you would prefer to access the newsletter on our website, please contact the Office to remove yourself from the mailing list""" cSrarffihingoutfor Awenticm" Office of Child Fatality Review 506 Roswell Street, Suite 230 Marietta Georgia, 30060 Phone: 770.528.3988 Fax: 770.528.3989 Website: www.sacfr.dhr.aeorqia.aov PRESORTED STANDARD U.S. POSTAGE PAID PERMIT#292 MARIETTA,GA In an effort to facilitate information sharing, w e have developed this newsletter to bring us closer. Knowing that our goal is the protection of children and the prevention of child deaths, w e want to include your experiences and ideas to improve the quality of services w e provide. Please contact us w i t h any suggestions on how to make the Office of Child Fatality Review process helpful to you. G o Team!