Creating a National Violent Death Reporting System: a successful beginning

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Data Science

Background:

• Advocacy for a national violent death data system emerged in 1999, inspired by motor-vehicle crash data systems.
• A decade-long effort, supported by foundations, led to the development of a robust national system.
• Mobilization of a broad coalition was crucial for securing federal funding.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish a national data system for violent deaths in the U.S.
• To collect in-depth information on the circumstances surrounding suicides, a novel feature for a national system.
• To make comprehensive violent death data accessible to researchers and the public.

Main Methods:

• Modeled the system after existing motor-vehicle crash data systems.
• Developed a high-quality pilot version to test and refine the system.
• Integrated data from 17 states into the online system.

Main Results:

• The National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) became operational in November 2008.
• NVDRS provides rich, in-depth data on the circumstances of violent deaths, including suicides.
• Data from 17 states were made available online through the NVDRS website (www.cdc.gov/ncipc/wisqars/).

Conclusions:

• The successful implementation of NVDRS marks a significant advancement in understanding violent deaths in the U.S.
• The system's availability facilitates research and public health initiatives aimed at violence prevention.
• NVDRS serves as a critical resource for informing policy and interventions related to violent death and suicide.