Before the pandemic, in Calabria the infant mortality rate within the first year of life was three times that of Tuscany, with 4.42 deaths for every 1000 live births, against 1.45. More than double, however, in Sicily: 3.34. Furthermore, being born in Caltanissetta guarantees an average life expectancy of 80.2 years, while in Florence the figure stands at 83.9. The Italian average is 82.4. They are the latest data reports “Atlas of childhood at risk How are you?” of Save The Children, which shows a rift between the north and south of the country. The report states that “a child from the South who fell ill in 2019 was 70% more likely to have to migrate to other regions to get treatment than a child from Central or Northern Italy”.
It is not only the health system that influences children’s health – we read – since all the social determinants linked to the territorial context in which we grow up, to economic conditions, to the level of education, to the environment, to social networks and of services”. There is also a split with the South as regards access to public and affiliated nursery schools. Under 3 years, 13.7% of children are affected, but the gap goes from 2.8% in Calabria to 28.4% in Emilia Romagna. The same municipalities spend much more in the north on kindergartens (2,617 euros in the Autonomous Province of Trento) than in the south.
The situation remains the same if we look at the data on absolute poverty: it affects 14.2% of all minors, but rises to 16% in the South. Food poverty affects one in 20 children, but the school canteen is not yet a free essential service for children aged between 3 and 10. According to Save The Children, socio-economic inequalities “have a direct impact on children’s health, penalizing those who most need treatment, prevention and health promotion and psycho-physical well-being services in their own area”.
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