Injury Prevention Research Center

Evaluating sexual violence prevention programs for a state health department.  Identifying soldiers with PTSD and depression for the U.S. military.  Surveilling alcohol and drug use for one of the largest U.S. city health departments. Since graduating from the UI College of Public Health last year, this is how three of our UI IPRC alumni are…

On April 13th over 30 people gathered in Des Moines to identify priorities to address the growing opioid overdose crisis in Iowa. The meeting was sponsored by the Injury Prevention Research Center (UI IPRC) and was part of a larger national project funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to make recommendations…

Last month around 35 people gathered for a community forum in Cedar Rapids to talk about how to prevent youth violence.  On the 5-member panel was our newest colleague from the Iowa Department of Public Health (IDPH): Tiffany Conroy, the state’s new violence prevention coordinator. Conroy recently moved from Chicago to join the team of…

February 27th— Around 35 people gathered for a community forum at the African American Museum in Cedar Rapids to talk about how to prevent youth violence.  They highlighted the community’s need for things like more access to mental health care, jobs, resources for prevention and more engagement by and with affected communities, among others. Community…

According to a new report, most American companies identify workplace violence as a priority and are doing their best to respond. However, smaller companies with more resource constraints lag behind larger businesses in having elements of a comprehensive program. Workplace violence in the U.S. makes up 16% of all workplace deaths, according to the 2015…

With our interdisciplinary partners, the UI IPRC has integrated innovative technology into our injury and violence research and prevention activities. These technologies have helped us study topics ranging from bicycle crashes to cyberbullying using such approaches as integrated geospacial video technologies and cellular phones. What these technologies have in common:  They help us learn how…

The University of Iowa Stead Family Children’s Hospital is close to opening the doors of a new hospital building. But what isn’t new is the UI IPRC’s strong partnership with the hospital in our common goal to prevent injuries in the state.  In Iowa and the United States, unintentional injuries are the leading cause of…

In farming states, urban sprawl around traditionally rural areas is just one of the reasons crashes between farm vehicles and passenger vehicles are likely to increase. With drivers unfamiliar with farm equipment, they may not know how to interact with these very large and slow-moving vehicles on public highways. However, alerting drivers with lights and…

Motor-vehicle safety is among the top 10 great public health achievements of the 20th century according to the CDC—and laws requiring seat belt use and child safety seats are among the reasons why. The majority of Iowans understand the importance of restraining their children, but there is still some work to do. To measure compliance…

Some people don’t call 911 after a crime has been committed against them. However, IPRC researchers found that individuals who report being victims of crime to police are less likely to be victimized in the future compared to those who don’t do so. The new study, published July 28 in the journal PLOS ONE, looked…