The Burden of Injury in Wisconsin: Development and dissemination of a data tool

Purpose: Injuries are the leading cause of death in Wisconsin residents ages 1-44 years and result in over $1 billion in unnecessary medical costs each year in the state. Due to the locally-controlled public health structure in Wisconsin, public health practitioners, officials, and researchers need data presented on a smaller geographic scale. The Burden of Injury in Wisconsin report was created to provide access to comprehensive, county specific, easy-to-use data for use at state and local levels, for government, academic, and community entities.

Methods: The Injury Research Center-Medical College of Wisconsin, Children's Health Alliance of Wisconsin and the Wisconsin Department of Health and Family Services collaborated to produce a report that captures the injury burden at state and county levels. External cause of injury codes were obtained from death, hospitalization, and emergency department visit records to provide frequency and rate calculations in the report. Injury-related hospitalization and emergency department charges were also included.

Results: The report presented the leading causes of injury from 2002-2004 overall in Wisconsin and in each of its 72 counties. The injury burden was presented across the lifespan, with county-specific rates compared to the overall state rates.

Conclusions: The positive impacts from this effort were four-fold: 1) availability of much-needed data to local and state government, academic and community organizations; 2) strengthening of partnerships through a unique collaboration; 3) increased awareness of injury as a public health problem through coordinated dissemination efforts to public health departments and officials; 4) dissemination to policy and decision makers.