PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
Effective decision-making is enhanced by a systematic approach to data collection and analysis. A new approach to decision-making on issues involving highway safety is the linking of traffic records data to health data in order to obtain a complete picture of motor vehicle crash-related injuries and fatalities. Prior to creation of Iowa's Trauma System Registry, the state did not have a mechanism in place to collect and aggregate data on the cause, treatment, and outcome of injuries related to motor vehicle crashes, thereby slowing the process for planning highway safety programs.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
The Trauma System Registry project was created in 1996 with a goal that was two-fold: establish a mechanism for the reporting of motor vehicle crash-related injury data, and provide a vehicle for reporting data related to all injuries. The primary objective for achieving this goal was the development of a data collection mechanism in 10 large hospitals which could be replicated in all Iowa hospitals.

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES
Currently, Iowa does not have a state-wide system that records and reports aggregate hospital data on injuries. Therefore, this project used the hospital-specific trauma registries of 10 hospitals that collect injury data but do not submit the data aggregately to the state Department of Public Health. Specific strategies used to develop the Trauma System Registry included the following:

• Development of a trauma coordinator user group to meet monthly and discuss data elements, definitions, and reports to be used with the Registry
• Development of software for the collection and analysis of hospital trauma data that could be aggregated and reported to the Department of Public Health. As the project progressed, the software was modified to include the collection of data required by the Head and Spinal Registry, so that in the future, hospitals will need only provide one data set for reporting purposes
• Training of hospital trauma coordinators on the use of the software
• Linking of hospital trauma data to traffic data

RESULTS In 1996, the 10 demonstration hospitals successfully collected and reported injury data linked with traffic data involving 4,224 unintentional injuries. Analysis of the data indicated that 49 percent of the injuries were ground transportation-related (of which 78 percent were automobile crash-related), accounting for 46 percent of all hospital charges. As a result of the collection of these data, the communities surrounding participating hospitals have been able to use the data to assess local traffic safety issues and plan for the development of programs and strategies to address and correct these problems.

FUNDING   Section 402: $40,000   State: $12,000 CONTACT     Dick Harmon Bureau of Emergency Medical Services Department of Public Health Lucas State Office Building Des Moines, IA 50319 (515) 281-5737