AQW 9453/22-27

Mr Nick Mathison
Alliance Party
Strangford

Tabled Date: 22/03/2024
Answered On Date: 09/04/2024
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister of Health whether his Department maintains a register of children who have died as a result of Sudden Unexpected Death in Childhood.

Answer:

The Department of Health does not maintain a register of sudden unexpected in infancy/childhood deaths (SUDIC). The Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) is responsible for holding and analysing statistics on causes of death within the jurisdiction.

However, the Public Health Agency (PHA) is in the process of developing a regional protocol in relation to the notification and management of SUDIC. The PHA maintains a register of any child death notified to it; this includes those that are sudden and unexpected.

In addition to the above, if a child dies due to SUDIC, as per standard procedure, his/her death will be reported to and investigated by the coroner. If the death occurs in hospital, it will be subject to a multi-disciplinary review to determine if there are opportunities for learning to be identified.