Building future leaders in recreational injury prevention and control

In 2006, the National Park Service (NPS) established the first ever science based Public Risk Management Program (PRMP) to support park efforts to prevent unintentional injuries in visitors. With limited funding, few staff, and a goal to build future leaders in the field of injury prevention in outdoor environments, PRMP established an internship program in collaboration with the Student Conservation Association to provide students with opportunities to gain practical experience in park settings. The program serves as an extension of PRMP research, programmatic, and educational initiatives to improve injury prevention in parks. After a pilot phase, lessons learned were translated into a highly innovative and successful injury prevention internship program. Through two years of systematic review of intern deliverables, analysis of evaluations from park staff and interns, and collaborations with partners, this session will demonstrate how PRMP staff refined the internship program to incorporate unique features into five essential elements of the program: project development, intern recruitment and selection; management and structure; training; and program evaluation. Since 2007, PRMP has placed 30 students nationwide to engage in park-specific risk management projects and has saved the government over $1 million in outsourcing costs. Interns have delivered quality products to parks and continued their experience by publishing in peer reviewed journals, presenting at national conferences, and continuing their work with parks to fulfill graduate level research requirements. Interns have gone on to medical school and the CDC EIS program. The program has been replicated by other NPS programs and other federal agencies.