Published January 6, 2025

2024 was a big year for our center! In the summer, we learned that we were refunded as one of 11 Injury Control Research Centers (ICRCs) by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Over the next five years, our $4.3 million grant will allow us to continue addressing urgent injury and violence issues, such as adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), drug overdoses, suicide, and older adult falls.

In August, we met with our new executive committee members who represent 10 departments across campus and bring incredible expertise and passion to prevent traumatic injuries. And in November, our visionary director, Carri Casteel, was awarded the 2024 Distinguished Career Award from Injury Control and Emergency Health Services Section of the American Public Health Association. Our team is ready for the hard work ahead.

On November 18, 2024, we celebrated the fifth annual National Injury Prevention Day along with advocates around the nation. To mark the day, we created a video of buildings and landmarks in Iowa ‘shining a green light’ on injury prevention over the last five years. We also exhibited our center and promoted injury and violence prevention (IVP) as a field of study to students at the UI College of Public Health. We are always looking for future IVP leaders!

As a new year begins, we are especially thankful to our dedicated colleagues and partners throughout Iowa and around the world who are making our communities safer and saving lives.

Here, we look back at some of our center’s highlights in 2024.

• We participated in a full day conference on the sovereign lands of the Lakota Sioux Tribe (Pine Ridge Reservation, SD), addressing violence and injury prevention in Indian Country, as part of a new regional partnership with the University of Nebraska (UNL) Interpersonal Violence Research Lab/Peaceful Means Project and the University of Colorado Injury and Violence Prevention Center.
• We collaborated with partners on a new state report about the beliefs, attitudes, and experiences of Iowans on violence and safety and disseminated it through a blog article and webinar.
• Our literature reviews and gap analyses informed the FY25 Integrated Prevention Research Agenda, which defines key research priorities to synchronize the U.S. Department of Defense’s violence prevention initiatives.
• We co-sponsored the annual Iowa Preventing Childhood Injury Conference in Grinnell, bringing advocates together to discuss hot topics such as ATVs on public roadways and plant and mushroom poisonings.  
• An op-ed published by UI IPRC’s Dr. Hamann led to lawmakers extending protections in Iowa’s crosswalk law to those who are not on foot, such as bicyclists, people in wheelchairs, and children in strollers.
• We co-sponsored the 8^th annual Occupational Health and Safety Student Research Conference at the UI College of Public Health.
• 17 faculty, staff, and students attended the SAVIR conference in Chapel Hill, N.C., to learn the latest research, present their work, and network.
• We published two policy briefs highlighting how hands-free laws and stronger child passenger safety laws can help make Iowa roads safer.
• We funded new research through our pilot grant program on pedestrian safety and disaster preparedness among older adults.
• Our monthly injury blog featured research on topics such as: child lawn mower injuries, safe gun storage, drowning, and pediatric falls. We also redesigned our website www.uiiprc.org.

UI IPRC in the news (examples):

Lawn mower accidents are more common than you think. Here’s how to keep your kids safe (Des Moines Register)

New research demonstrates fatal consequences of OHV county ordinances allowing on road use (Consumer Federation of America)

Drivers encouraged to slow down around farm vehicles (KCRG News)

Stressed out: The new tool examining stress among women farmers (WQAD News)

Workers in their teens and early 20s are more likely to get hurt than older employees (The Conversation)

UI IPRC publications (examples):

UI study examines perpetrators of child homicides in the U.S., use of guns

Developing community-level implementation networks to connect older adults to evidence-based falls prevention programs

Firearm exposure and safety training of rural Iowa youth

Predictors of rural driver self-reported passing behaviors when interacting with farm equipment on the roadway

Technology as a problem and potential solution in teen driving safety

What’s next in 2025?  Some examples:

• We will host the first event of our new Firearm Safety Research and Practice Team (RPAT), a research symposium on campus.
• We will help develop Iowa’s injury and violence prevention 5-year strategic plan with the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services.
• We will conduct a center alumni survey to refine our training and education opportunities.

 We wish everyone a safe and healthy 2025!