Yuma County ranks low in youth issues

A new report has revealed alarming statistics about children in Yuma County.

The study showed that children and teens in Yuma County have a high rate for child deaths and children living in poverty, with Yuma County leading the state in teen births.

The Children's Action Alliance, a nonprofit, nonpartisan research, education and advocacy organization dedicated to promoting the well-being of Arizona’s children and families, released the 2009 Kids Count Data Book Tuesday in collaboration with the Anne E. Casey Foundation's national report. The state report provides statistics in seven categories affecting children and teens and includes the 15 counties in Arizona as well as a state rate.

In Yuma County, there were 71.8 teen births per 1,000 females age 15 to 19 years old in 2006. That number is the highest in any county, and 12.2 teens more than the state rate of 59.6.

Yuma County also ranks high among other counties, with 25.9 children per 100 under 18 years old living in poverty in 2006.

State Rep. Russ Jones, R-Yuma, said it's important for families in Yuma to have family members employed, especially with the high unemployment rate in the area, which for June reached almost 20 percent.

"Once you get into that cycle that you're in poverty, it becomes multigenerational and it becomes more and more difficult to break that cycle," Jones said.

Jones said one solution is to aggressively look at ways to attract employment, including offering incentives to small businesses, which he said make up the majority of the businesses in Yuma County.

As businesses grow, they are able to employ more workers and can help families break the poverty cycle, he said.

According to the report, another problem in Yuma County is child deaths, with 22.6 child deaths per 100,000 children age 1 to 14 in 2006. The state rate is 21.5.

There was a little good news in the report.

Yuma County scored lower than the state rates in the categories of low birth weight, infant mortality, teen deaths and high school dropouts.  

But that doesn't mean children and teens in Yuma County don't face challenges, said state Sen. Amanda Aguirre, D-Yuma, in a news release about the report.

"It is good news that the teen death rate in Yuma County was one of the lowest in the state in 2006," she said. "But our teen birth rate was the highest in any county.

"Our rural communities need health resources and community strategies to keep kids safe and to give them the hope and the possibility of a better future."

One group working toward that goal is the statewide organization First Things First (FTF). FTF, one of 31 local councils of the Arizona Early Childhood Development and Health Board, provides qualified organizations that help children and families with children up to age 5 with funding through Proposition 203.

Mary Sanford, FTF regional coordinator, said last year, the group was able to provide organizations in Yuma County with $5.5 million.

She said a report from FTF indicates much of the same data as the report released Tuesday. She said one solution is to help provide prenatal care for women and teens. She said south Yuma County and the east valley are areas where women are particularly vulnerable.

And early prenatal care can help prevent issues such as low birth weight.

"If there are issues present for that child, they're not going to be detected," she said. "Early detection is the key for more successful outcomes."

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ARIZONA AND YUMA STATS

• Low birth weight, per 1,000 live births in 2006: Arizona 7.1, Yuma County 5.8

• Infant mortality, per 1,000 live births in 2006: Arizona 6.3, Yuma County 5.4

• Child deaths, per 100,000 children 1-14 years old in 2006: Arizona 21.5, Yuma County 22.6

• Teen deaths per 100,000 15-19 years old in 2006: Arizona 93.8, Yuma County 38.8

• Teen births per 1,000 females 15-19 years old in 2006: Arizona 59.6, Yuma County 71.8

• High school dropouts per 100 students grades 7-12 in 2007: Arizona 4.2, Yuma County 3.4

• Children in poverty per 100 children under 18 years old in 2007: Arizona 20, Yuma County 25.9

Source: Children's Action Alliance