Community Traffic Injury

Prevention Program (TIPP) NORTH CAROLINA

PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION

The City of Charlotte in Mecklenberg County, North Carolina experienced the highest rate of motor vehicle crashes and injuries per 1,000 population in 1989, with 76 motor vehicle fatalities and more than 14,000 motor vehicle injuries. The loss in terms of dollars to taxpayers was $267.5 million for the years 1987 through 1989. In spite of its significant traffic crash problem, the community lacked a true collaborative community traffic safety program.

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The goal of the Community Traffic Injury Prevention Program (TIPP) was to reach beyond the traditional parameters of the health care delivery system to address community traffic and other injury-related problems. Specific objectives included:

Combining public/private sector resources to identify and address injury problems in Mecklenberg and surrounding North Carolina counties

Using information gathering devices capable of significantly enhancing injury data surveillance, epidemiological analysis and consistent evaluation

Measuring the impact of the TIPP targeted intervention in terms of reduced morbidity, mortality, disability and/or medical costs and acceptance

STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES

Under the leadership of the Carolinas Medical Center, the Charlotte Community TIPP was implemented in 1988 through collaborative planning and resource support from many public and private agencies. Several injury surveillance databases were accessed and linked to help identify specific traffic crash and injury problems. Communities were then able to develop programs that were more effective in addressing particular problem areas.

Community Traffic Injury

Prevention Program (TIPP) (cont'd)

For children and youth issues, TIPP personnel implemented a safety seat giveaway program for children born in the Carolinas Medical Center, and developed a Safety Town presentation, a KIDTIPS curriculum, and a K-12 Safety Education Curriculum that provided traffic safety education and injury prevention tips to school children. TIPP also included bicycle safety education programs in economically depressed areas and a THINK FIRST program to prevent head injuries. In the area of substance abuse, TIPP initiated an ENCARE program for high school students that delivered presentations on the risks involved with using alcohol and the tragic results that often occur with drinking and driving. Students were encouraged to organize Students Against Driving Drunk (SADD) groups to underscore prevention efforts.

Enforcement initiatives implemented by the Charlotte Police Department, the Mecklenberg County Police Department, the North Carolina Highway Patrol and the Carolinas Medical Center included community education, increased enforcement and additional training for police officers. Law enforcement officers, the Mecklenberg County Health Department and some church groups implemented programs targeting elderly pedestrian problems. To increase the use of occupant restraints, TIPP worked with NORTH CAROLINA SEAT BELTS FOR SAFETY and the North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association to create a "Safety First Program," training new car sales personnel on the use of automobile safety features and automatic restraints. Mecklenberg County MEDIC presented the "Safety First" program to area sales personnel.

RESULTS

TIPP efforts clearly contributed to a decline in injuries and fatalities in the Charlotte-Mecklenberg County area. Child restraint use in Charlotte reached 84.8 percent compared to 71.1 percent in non-targeted cities. The Charlotte TIPP led to development of new injury databases and expansion of its trauma treatment boundaries to provide services to victims in South Carolina. A Community Resource Center was also developed, providing traffic safety information to the community. TIPP created an unprecedented awareness of the need for effective injury prevention programs and led to significant developments in the approach to North Carolina' injury prevention strategies.