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5 <br /> 1. Background <br /> Session Law 2023-134, Section 9H.15 directed the North Carolina Department of Health and <br /> Human Services (NCDHHS) to create a new State Office of Child Fatality Prevention in order to <br /> strengthen the state's Child Fatality Review System for preventing child fatalities and <br /> maltreatment. Along with the creation of a new state office,the legislation lays out a broad <br /> restructuring of child fatality review systems statewide, with the goal of streamlining processes, <br /> preventing child deaths, and promoting child well-being. The key components from this <br /> legislation that affirms the state's shared vision and commitment in North Carolina include the <br /> following: <br /> • Creates a new Office of Child Fatality Prevention within NCDHHS' Division of Public <br /> Health. Five new positions were created to perform the following roles within the <br /> restructured Child Fatality Prevention System: <br /> o Coordinate the work of the statewide Child Fatality Prevention System. <br /> o Implement and manage a centralized data and information system capable of <br /> gathering, analyzing, and reporting aggregate information from child death review <br /> teams with appropriate protocols for sharing information and protecting <br /> confidentiality. <br /> o Create and implement tools, guidelines, resources, and training and provide <br /> technical assistance to Local Teams to enable them to: <br /> ■ Conduct effective reviews which are tailored to the type of death being <br /> reviewed. <br /> ■ Make effective recommendations about child fatality prevention. <br /> ■ Gather, analyze, and appropriately report on case data and findings, while <br /> protecting confidentiality. <br /> ■ Facilitate the implementation of prevention strategies in their <br /> communities. <br /> o Work with the North Carolina Division of Social Services,North Carolina Office <br /> of the Chief Medical Examiner's child fatality staff, and the North Carolina State <br /> Center for Health Statistics to provide Local Teams initial information about child <br /> deaths in their respective counties. <br /> o Perform research, consult with stakeholders and experts, and collaborate with <br /> other organizations and individuals for the purpose of understanding the direct <br /> and contributing causes of child deaths as well as evidence-driven strategies, <br /> programs, and policies to prevent child deaths, abuse, and neglect in order to <br /> inform the work of the Child Fatality Prevention System. <br /> o Collaborate with the Division of Social Services to determine the manner in <br /> which information from internal fatality reviews conducted by the Division of <br /> Social Services can appropriately inform Local Team reviews of these cases. <br /> o Educate State and local leaders, including the members and staff of the North <br /> Carolina General Assembly, executive branch department heads, as well as <br /> stakeholders, advocates, and the public, about the Child Fatality Prevention <br /> System, and issues and prevention strategies addressed by the system. <br /> o Collaborate with State and local agencies, nonprofit organizations, academia, <br /> advocacy organizations, and others to facilitate the implementation of <br /> I <br />