The first world report on child injury prevention will be introduced at the University of Washington in an international forum Thursday Dec. 11 from 2-5 p.m. at Hogness Auditorium.

"The World Report on Child Injury Prevention," published by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF contains information about the five most important causes of unintentional injury to children across the globe--road traffic injury, drowning, burns, falls and poisoning, as well as actions that can be taken to tackle the problem.

WHO, the Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center and the UW Department of Global Health, will host a forum to provide an overview of the problem with international injury experts and generate discussion of prevention strategies.

Featured speakers include two of the report's co-editors, Dr. Frederick Rivara, vice chair, UW Department of Pediatrics, and Dr. Fazlur Rahman, head of the Center for Injury Prevention and Research, Bangladesh. They will be joined by Noble John Appiah, director, National Road Safety Commission, Ghana; Dr. Martha Hijar Medina, National Institute of Public Health, Mexico; Dr. Corinne Peek-Asa, director of the International Collaborative Trauma and Injury Training Program in Central Europe; Dr. Beth Ebel, director, Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center; and Dr. Judy Wasserheit, vice chair, UW Department of Global Health.

Injury is a leading cause of death for children across the globe. The event will complement an international effort to create safer communities for children. Partner sponsors include UW Medicine, Seattle Children's and Seattle Children's Center for Diversity and Health Equity. Contributing sponsors include Operation Smile and Pemco Mutual Insurance Cos. Attendance is complimentary, but advance registration is required. Please call 206-744-9476 or email hiprc@u.washington.edu.