CDC Injury Control Research Centers: Identifying contributions and synergy

Background: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC) has funded Injury Control Research Centers (ICRC) since 1987. In 2008, NCIPC began a program evaluation of the ICRCs to describe the contributions of the ICRC program to building and sustaining the field of injury prevention and control. Key stakeholders, including NCIPC leadership and staff, ICRC directors, and evaluation experts identified critical research questions and worked with the evaluation team to develop logic models that describe the program and evaluation outcomes. Purpose: The purpose of the evaluation is to: 1) assess the relevance, quality, and significance of ICRC activities and outcomes; 2) highlight success stories over the course of the program; 3) identify research and programmatic gaps and foci for guiding NCIPC policy, funding, and staffing decisions. Methods: Qualitative and quantitative data were collected during two site visits to ICRCs and in telephone interviews with 12 currently funded ICRCs. Results: The presentation highlights program level findings, including the centers' research priorities, evidence of translation of research to practice, significant collaborations, leveraging of funding, and training programs. We discuss the impact of these findings on the centers' ability to generate the synergy that is critical to building and sustaining the injury field, beyond the impact of their individual projects. Conclusions: Through the discussion of these findings, we highlight the program's contributions and identify promising practices that maximize the utility of CDC-ICRC program in the field of injury prevention and control.