Research Interest Area: Injury Epidemiology

Accident car crash with bicycle on road

Students in the injury epidemiology interest area will have opportunities to collaborate and gain skills across many disciplines (e.g., medicine, engineering, psychology, urban planning, etc.) which will prepare them for careers in this growing field.

Overview

Injury and violence are the leading causes of death among young people between 1 and 44 years of age in the U.S. Unintentional injuries from motor vehicle crashes, falls, fires/burns, poisonings (primarily from prescription drug overdoses), and violence from homicides and suicides kill more young people each year than cancer, diabetes, heart disease and the flu.

This interest area will prepare you for jobs in a wide range of settings:

  • academia
  • local to international agencies
  • non-profits
  • industry

Students with a Master’s degree (MS or MPH) may go on to become a project coordinator, evaluator, or data manager and students earning PhDs may find careers as independent researchers or senior epidemiologists in a federal agency. To learn more about careers in injury and violence prevention, click here.

Students with the following topic interests are encouraged to explore this research interest area:

  • unintentional injury and violence prevention
  • occupational and environmental epidemiology
  • intervention and translational research
  • pharmacoepidemiology
  • behavioral health
  • rural acute care
  • road traffic safety
  • interpersonal violence
  • older adult falls
  • opioid overdose
  • traumatic brain injury
  • injury and trauma systems evaluation
  • global injury
  • sports injury
  • self-harm and suicide
  • adverse childhood experiences

Faculty

Faculty members primarily working in this area

James TornerTraumatic brain injury, injury and trauma systems evaluation, rural acute care,
Cara HamannRoad safety, vulnerable road users (pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists, teen drivers, older drivers), global injury prevention, child passenger safety
Jonathan PlattSuicide and suicidal behaviors, alcohol and substance use, child and adolescent health
Carri CasteelWorkplace violence prevention, occupational safety, older adult falls prevention, epidemiology of prescription drug overdoses

Collaborating faculty

Rima Afifiadolescent and youth, refugees, mental health, community-based participatory research, intervention development and evaluation
Sato Ashidaaging, disaster preparedness, evaluation
Natoshia AskelsonHealth policy and behavior change, family and child health, health communication, evaluation
Mark BergCriminology, social psychology, adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), interpersonal conflicts
Timothy BrownDriving safety, in-vehicle systems, warning systems, medical considerations in driving, driver performance
Ryan CarnahanPharmacoepidemiology, aging
Joe CavanaughModel selection, time series analysis, modeling diagnostics
Kari HarlandTeen driver crash prevention, family violence, work-related crashes
Chuck JennissenAll-terrain vehicle injury prevention, pediatric emergency care
Anton KrugerEmbedded systems and data collection device development
Michele LilienthalTraumatic injuries, burns, emergency management and treatment
Dan McGeheeDriver attention and response, crash avoidance, automation, traumatology
Nick MohrEmergency department telemedicine, time-to-care
Edith ParkerGlobal public health, community-based participatory research, health equity, environmental health interventions
Audrey SaftlasIntimate partner violence and interventions
Steve SpearsTravel behavior, physical activity, road safety, spatial analysis
Kristel WetjenPediatric traumatic and unintentional injury prevention, child passenger safety, toy safety, bicycling safety
Armeda WojciakTrauma-informed practices, parent-child relationships, at-risk youth, social and education policy
Rachel YoungSocial media, user-generated digital content, cyberbullying, bystander intervention, interventions
Xun ZhouSpatial and spatio-temporal data mining, big data analytics, geographic information systems, motor vehicle crashes

Curriculum

Featured Courses

  • EPID:4510 Injury and Violence Prevention
  • CPH:4220 Global Road Safety
  • EPID:6510 Injury Epidemiology

Learning Objectives

Students interested in injury epidemiology are preparing for a career in which they will:

  • Apply concepts of injury control and prevention to identify and prioritize injury problems and quantify and prioritize risk and protective factors in communities and high-risk populations,
  • Identify strategies to prevent injuries, and implement and evaluate injury prevention control measures and programs,
  • Apply epidemiologic methods in injury research and use statistical applications to analyze and interpret data,
  • Successfully compete for federal, state and foundation grants,
  • Participate in advocacy efforts for injury prevention research, funding and programs
  • Lead and manage large-scale etiologic, intervention, and translational research studies

Injury Epidemiology Curriculum

Centers and Resources