Child Death Review Teams
Preventing child abuse, neglect, and child fatalities is a community
effort. A child fatality is a tragic event. Each year in Nevada, over 100
children die from preventable causes of death. According to the 2019 Statewide Child Death Report (which can be found in the Nevada Annual Child Death Report Page), the top four manners and causes of death
(excluding natural and undetermined deaths) are as follows:
- Accidents caused by unintentional asphyxia
- Homicides caused by assault, weapon, or a person’s body
part
- Accidents caused by drowning
- Suicides caused by hanging
Child Death Review
Teams
Multidisciplinary teams around the state conduct
comprehensive reviews of child death cases to better understand how and why
children ages 0-17 die. There are eight (8) Child Death Review Teams (CDRT),
determined by region/county:
- Clark County
- Washoe County
- Carson Rural Region (Carson City,
Douglas, and Storey counties)
- Elko Rural Region (Lander and Elko counties)
- Nye County Region (Nye, Esmeralda,
Lincoln counties)
- Ely Region (White Pine and Eureka
counties)
- Fallon Region (Churchill, Lander,
Mineral, Pershing, and Humboldt counties)
- Lyon County
Clark County and Washoe County each have a team, and the Rural
Region has six teams. These teams are comprised of representatives from various
agencies, such as the coroner’s office, law enforcement, school personnel,
medical professionals, child protection services, the district attorney’s
office, and other agencies that can provide valuable input.
This
multidisciplinary approach brings subject matter experts to the table to
analyze trends and make recommendations for prevention to the state oversight
team, the Executive Committee to Review the Death of Children.
Furthermore,
NRS 432B.4095 was enacted which incorporated the confidentiality of information
obtained and reviewed at regional CDRT meetings, including protection from
disclosure, subpoena, discovery, and introduction into evidence for civil or
criminal proceedings.
More Information
For more information about the leading causes of child death in Nevada, please follow the links on the right side of this page for data, reports, and resources on child safety.