Survey of State-Level Data Systems for the Study of Motor-Vehicle Related Injuries
From Winter 1995Volume II, Number 1
In late 1993, the CDC's National Center for Injury Prevention and Control
(NCIPC) and NHTSA cofunded a national survey of three primary state data
systems: police crash reports, emergency medical service ambulance run reports,
and hospital discharge records. The goal of this effort was to assess the
status of these data sets in each state and for the nation as a whole. Issues
investigated by the survey included the uniformity and comprehensiveness
of data systems, computerization at the state level, and data set linkage.
Information was also collected on other databases that could help describe
injury outcomes, including head and spinal cord injury registries, trauma
registries, and emergency department records. The survey was sent to the
data administrator of each of the relevant data systems in every state and
achieved a remarkable 100 percent response.
Survey results supported the need for more uniform data collection, data
set linkage, and computerization, all of which will enable states to utilize
their existing data more effectively. Linking data sets that provide different
information about the same events is one of the most efficient and cost-effective
ways of improving data collection. Linking police crash reports, EMS ambulance
run reports, and hospital discharge records allows better descriptions of
the circumstances and outcomes of motor vehicle crashes than any of the
three data systems can provide on its own. Police crash reports, for example,
contain information on vehicle characteristics, weather, the roadway environment,
seat belt use, child restraint use, and motorcycle helmet use. None of this
information is included in hospital discharge data. However, hospital discharge
data contains a wealth of information on the nature of the injuries sustained
by individuals involved in the crash (e.g., a skull fracture) as well as
longer-term consequences of these injuries (e.g., permanent disability).
EMS data can provide additional information on both the crash event and
the medical condition of the injured as well as data about the medical treatment
received at the crash site and en route to a hospital. Linking these three
data sets can provide a comprehensive picture of the event and its consequences.
These data can also be used to measure the effectiveness of such injury
prevention measures such as seat belts, motorcycle helmets, and child restraint
devices and to track the costs of motor vehicle-related injuries.
The results of the survey will be published in one or more journal articles;
Building Bridges will provide updates on these articles as more information
becomes available. Survey results are currently available for each state.
For more information, contact Julie Russell at the National Center for Injury
Prevention and Control, (404) 488-4652.
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