Last updated:  April 2010

Merrily Wholf, RN, MPH
Ohio CFR Coordinator
Bureau of Child and Family Health Services
Ohio Department of Health
246 North High Street, 6^th Floor
Columbus Ohio 43215
Phone: 614 728-0773
Fax: 614-564-2442
Email: merrily.wholf@odh.ohio.gov

Website:  http://www.odh.ohio.gov/odhPrograms/cfhs/cfr/cfr1.aspx

Tools

• Ohio Child Fatality Review Legislation

• Ohio 2001 Annual Report 
• Ohio 2002 Annual Report
• Ohio 2003 Annual Report Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
• Ohio 2004 Annual Report Part 1 Part 2
• Ohio 2005 Annual Report Part 1 Part 2
• Ohio 2006 Annual Report Part 1 Part 2
• Ohio 2007 Annual Report Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
• Ohio 2008 Annual Report Part 1 Part 2 Part 3
• Ohio 2009 Annual Report Part 1 Part 2

• Cuyahoga County 2007 Annual Report

• Ohio Child Mortality Data, 2002
• Ohio Child Mortality Data, 2003
• Ohio Child Mortality Data, 2005
• Ohio Child Mortality Data, 2006

Administration
Recognizing the need to better understand why children die, in July 2000, Governor Bob Taft signed into law the bill establishing the Child Fatality Review (CFR) program for Ohio.  Local boards in each county are mandated to review all deaths from all causes to children under 18 years of age. The mission is to reduce the incidence of preventable deaths in Ohio. The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) and the Ohio Children's Trust Fund are responsible for administration and program support of CFR. A full-time state coordinator is employed by ODH.

The annual budget for the Ohio CFR program is about $150,000.  This includes the salaries of all staff involved, training and producing an annual state report.  There are 1.5 FTE's at the state level.  Funding for the program comes from the MCH Block Grant.

Teams
Ohio has 88 local boards and a state advisory committee. 

State Advisory Committee:
The State CFR Advisory Committee was established in April 2002 to assist in moving the process ahead in Ohio. The purpose of this committee is to review Ohio’s child mortality data and CFR data to identify trends in child deaths; to provide expertise and consultation in analyzing and understanding the causes, trends and system responses to child fatalities in Ohio; to make recommendations in law, policy and practice to prevent child deaths in Ohio; to support CFR and recommend improvements in protocols and procedures; and to review and provide input for the annual report.  The committee membership represents diverse professions, state agencies and external partners.

Local Teams:
All reviews are conducted by 88 county boards that meet at least once per year.

Reviews
Ohio’s CFR boards review deaths from all causes to children less than 18 years of age. They may review child deaths retrospectively (deaths that occurred one year in the past) or concurrently (deaths that occurred in the current year). 

Purpose
Ohio established a CFR Program to better understand how and why children die and to take action to prevent other child deaths. The purpose of the local Child Fatality Review boards is to reduce the incidence of preventable child deaths. 

Data
Ohio uses the national Child Death Review Case Reporting System. Each local board enters case data into a Web-based system which allows ODH to access de-identified data for aggregate state reports.

Annual Report
Ohio produces an annual state report, which is distributed as required by law to elected state officials and to additional interested parties. The report includes review findings for all causes of death as well as recommendations and initiatives for prevention of further deaths. The report is available on the ODH Web site. >Many of the local teams produce county level reports.

Prevention Initiatives
In 2009, more than half of the 88 local boards reported prevention activities as a result of the CFR process.

• Findings about vehicular deaths has resulted in many counties taking action to improve teen driver education and to address other issues specific to driving issues in their community.  Ohio now has a Booster Seat Law.


• The number of counties addressing sudden infant death syndrome and other sleep-related deaths continues to increase each year.  A variety of programs target minority families, grandparents, caregivers, health professionals and the whole community with risk reduction messges.


• Local boards are sharing their findings with local and state lawmakers to address the dangers of children on all-terrain vehicles, the need for fencing around retention ponds in residential areas, and to engage local governments in promoting gun safety education.


• A variety of creative approaches have been developed to deliver prevention messages, such as community baby showers, county fair demonstrations, and enclosures with utility bills.


• To address needs identified through the reviews of many infant deaths, collaborative groups have been organized in some counties to promote early prenatal care and healthy lifestyles for pregnant women.

Protocols
Ohio has a CFR meeting protocol in place. 

Training
Training for local review teams is organized by the Ohio Department of Health in partnership with the Ohio Children’s Trust Fund and experienced CFR teams. An annual statewide CFR training is mandated by law; one member from each team is required to attend.