What is the relationship between deprivation, modifiable factors and childhood deaths: A cohort study using the English National Child Mortality Database

Odd, David; Stoianova, Sylvia; Williams, Tom; Odd, Dawn; Kurinczuk, Jennifer J; Wolfe, Ingrid; Luyt, Karen

Abstract

Objectives: The aim of this analysis is to identify the patterns of social deprivation and childhood mortality; and identify potential points where public health, social and education interventions, or health policy may be best targeted. Design: Decile of deprivation and underlying population distribution was derived using Office for National Statistics data. The risk of death was then derived using a Poisson regression model, calculating the increasing risk of death for each increasing deprivation decile. Setting: England. Participants: 2688 deaths before 18 years of age reviewed between April 2019 and March 2020. Main outcome measures: The relationship between deprivation and risk of death; for deaths with, and without modifiable factors. Results: There was evidence of increasing mortality risk with increase in deprivation decile, with children in the least deprived areas having a mortality of 13.25 (11.78–14.86) per 100 000 person-years, compared with 31.14 (29.13–33.25) in the most deprived decile (RR 1.08 (95% CI 1.07 to 1.10)); with the gradient of risk stronger in children who died with modifiable factors than those without (RR 1.12 (95% CI 1.09 to 1.15)) vs (RR 1.07 (95% CI 1.05 to 1.08)). Deprivation subdomains of employment, adult education, barriers to housing and services, and indoor living environments appeared to be the most important predictors of child mortality Conclusions: There is a clear gradient of increasing child mortality across England as measures of deprivation increase; with a striking finding that this varied little by area, age or other demographic factor. Over one-fifth of all child deaths may be avoided if the most deprived half of the population had the same mortality as the least deprived. Children dying in more deprived areas may have a greater proportion of avoidable deaths. Adult employment, and improvements to housing, may be the most efficient place to target resources to reduce these inequalities.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Nov 21, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Dec 9, 2022
• Publication Date: Dec 9, 2022
• Deposit Date: Dec 15, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Dec 15, 2022
• Journal: BMJ Open
• Electronic ISSN: 2044-6055
• Publisher: BMJ Publishing Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 12
• Issue: 12
• Pages: e066214
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2022-066214
• Keywords: General Medicine; deprivation; childhood deaths; English National Child Mortality Database
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/10253972
• Publisher URL: https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/12/12/e066214
• Additional Information: Data availability statement; Data are available on reasonable request. Aggregate data may be available on request to the corresponding author, and subject to approval by HQIP.; ; Ethics approval; The NCMD legal basis to collect confidential and personal level data under the Common Law Duty of Confidentiality has been established through the Children Act 2004 Sections M-N, Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 (https://consult.education.gov.uk/child-protection-safeguarding-and-family-law/working-together-to-safeguard-children-revisions-t/supporting_documents/WorkingTogethertoSafeguardChildren.pdf) and associated Child Death Review Statutory & Operational Guidance https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/859302/child-death-review-statutory-and-operational-guidance-england.pdf).; ; Acknowledgments; We thank all Child Death Overview Panels (CDOPs) who submitted data for the purposes of this report and all child death review professionals for submitting data and providing additional information when requested. Parent and public involvement is at the heart of the NCMD programme. We are indebted to Charlotte Bevan (Sands - Stillbirth and Neonatal Death Charity), Therese McAlorum (Child Bereavement UK) and Jenny Ward (Lullaby Trust), who represent bereaved families on the NCMD programme steering group. We thank the NCMD team for technical and administrative support.