A "large proportion" of deaths among children and young people between 2022 and 2023 were preventable, according to the latest National Paediatric Mortality Register.
The report found there were 612 deaths of children between 2022 and 2023.
Of those who died between 2022 and 2023, 363 were infants under one, 145 in children aged between one and 14 years and 104 were young people aged between 15 and 18 years.
The report highlights while the number of children dying is declining globally, there has been no significant decline in the mortality rate of older children (aged between 10 and 18 years) in Ireland since 2013.
It also found the infant mortality rate has "plateaued" and is higher than that of some other European countries.
The Chair of the National Paediatric Mortality Registrer Governance Committee said closer attention needs to be paid to infants dying of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) as rates have risen slightly.
Speaking on RTÉ's Morning Ireland, Professor Michael Barrett said: "We would often look for the opportunity for preventable causes to be identified."
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"So one of our recommendations for the report is actually to work with the Child Health Public Health Group in the HSE, and retrospectively look at all these sudden infant deaths to identify what is modifiable, what is known to cause this, and what vulnerable groups must we target in order to reduce that rate," Prof Barrett added.
He called for greater attention to be paid to those cases that could have preventable causes.
Prof Barrett said the majority of infant deaths were under the age of 28 days and explained these deaths are attributable to perinatal conditions.
He added that preventable trauma in adolescents also needs to be addressed.
Prof Barrett said the report found that almost half of all deaths between 15 to 18-year-olds were due to suspected self-harm.
He said it is up to the coroner to determine beyond a reasonable doubt if these deaths are suicide and that it would be preferable to be informed by coroners if there is a suspicion that cases are suicide.
Prof Barrett said that would allow them to analyse data and see what led up to the person's death and see if any opportunities were missed that could have prevented the death.
"This is all about opportunities missed, but it's also about when deaths are inevitable, that that journey is made easier, more comfortable for all involved," Prof Barrett added.
