Improving Motor Vehicle Crash-Related Trauma Data Quality

An increasing proportion of trauma care is being provided outside the hospital setting, so the hospital-based data reported to the state trauma registry is likely to reflect a narrower range of more severe injuries going forward. The importance of data integrity, quality, and integration with other reporting systems continues to increase, as reflected in the 2018 Traffic Records Improvement Plan. Failure to account for inconsistencies and changes over time will undermine the validity of assessments regarding the state's progress towards reducing the burden of motor vehicle crash-related injury. State support is not available for this work because of critical shortfalls in mandated state functions, notably pension funding. This year's trauma registry work will therefore focus on a comprehensive reassessment of reporting trends in addition to upgraded data management and response to elements of the Traffic Records Improvement Plan. In addition to our ongoing recruitment of new participating hospitals and outreach to participants with unmet needs, we will perform a comprehensive reassessment of trauma registry data for the period 2010-2019 to realign metrics with a focus on the types and causes of injury that (a) have the greatest impact on the state's overall burden of injury and/or (b) have the greatest potential for improved data integrity, quality, and integration. This assessment will be presented to the Trauma Advisory Council no later than the July 2020 meeting. We will also develop and implement a strategy to fill gaps in trauma registrar staffing and training.