Goals & Objectives
The goal of the Utah CODES project is to reduce the number and severity of motor vehicle traffic crashes by using probabilistically linked data to support programmatic and outcome-based policy decisions. To help accomplish this goal, the Utah CODES project has continued to gather, probabilistically link, and conduct research on statewide databases. We have presented our findings at a variety of national and international conferences and have published in a number of peer-reviewed journals.
Motor Vehicle Crash Records
Currently, the Utah CODES project has linked Utah police-reported motor vehicle crash records to:
- emergency department records for the years 1996 to 2008
- emergency medical services records for the years 1996 to 2000
- hospital discharge records for the years 1992 to 2008
- vital statistics records for the years 1992 to 1999
- driver license records for the years 1992 to 2008
Presentations
Presentations of our research have been given at a wide variety of national and international meetings including:
- American Medical Informatics Association
American Public Health Association- Annual Conference on Assessment Initiative
- Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine
- CODES Annual Meeting
- Emergency Medical Services for Children Grantee Meeting
- International Forum for Traffic Records and Highway Information Systems
- Maternal and Child Health Epidemiology Conference
- National Congress on Childhood Emergencies
- Society for the Advancement of Violence and Injury Research
- Transportation Research Board
- Utah legislative committee hearings
- Zero Fatalities Safety Summit
Research on Utah CODES linked databases has also resulted in several peer-reviewed publications.
Future Directions
The use of probabilistic linkage to combine databases has been an effective tool in motor vehicle crash research. Furthermore, the use of probabilistic linkage is a promising tool for studying injury mortality and morbidity for all mechanisms of injuries, not just motor vehicle crashes (Junkins et al., 2001; Knight et al., 2000; Suruda et al., 2000; Suruda et al., 1999).
Through research and its involvement with other state agencies and organizations, Utah CODES as part of the Intermountain Injury Control Research Center, will work towards meeting the goals outlined in Healthy People 2020, to increase the quality and years of healthy life in Utah.