The Philadelphia Department of Public Health released its first “Growing Up Philly” report. The report covers all things children’s health in Philly.
The report was created by the Health Department to help parents, caretakers, decision-makers, city officials and healthcare providers make well-informed decisions about the children of Philadelphia.
The report says that as of 2018, there were 122,512 kids under 6; 117,310 kids between 6 to 11 and 104,603 kids aged between 12 to 17 in Philly.
A release states that Growing Up Philly gives a summary of the health and well-being of kids from birth to adolescence. The report focuses on five major areas which include: health behaviors, clinical care, health outcomes, physical environment, social and economic factors.
The report released both negative and positive results.
In Philly, the report revealed that one in three children lives in poverty. One in two lives in a single-parent household.
The report revealed that racial/ethnic disparities continue to persist— it was reported that they are driven by inequities when it comes to the distribution of wealth.
The report revealed that Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome (NAS) is on the rise. This is when infants experience withdrawal after exposure to drugs in the womb. The rate has quadrupled during 2002-2018. In 2018, 13.8 per 1,000 live births have this syndrome.
In 2018, 1 in 11 infants were born low birth weight, which puts children at risk for long and short term complications such as developmental delays and sleep-related death.
When it comes to injury-related emergency department visits, the number rose. In 2018, there were 43,058 injury-related ED visits. The injuries include unintentional injuries such as suffocation, falls and motor vehicle accidents.
Despite the negative updates, there are some positive updates as well.
The report revealed that immunization rates, Perinatal indicators and health insurance coverage has improved. The report says that prenatal care and breastfeeding initiation has increased by over 50 percent over the past decade.
When it comes to preterm births, that rate has declined over the past decade. Last decade, it was 15 percent, and as of 2018, it has been brought down to 11.1 percent.
When it comes to vaccinations, over three-fourth of kids were up to date with five recommended vaccines for school entry in the 2018-2019 school year.
Another significant improvement is in 2018, only 3.1 percent of kids did not have health insurance, the national average for this 5.5 percent.
To read more about the “Growing Up Philly” report, check out this link.
