The State of Connecticut Department of Public Health’s Injury Prevention Program focuses on the Departmental Health Status Priority addressing the “reduction of the factors associated with intentional, unintentional and occupational injury”. The Injury Prevention Program, following National recommendations for intentional and unintentional injury prevention, conducts community-based programs with contractors to address risk and resiliency factors associated with and implement strategies to decrease injury.
The Injury Prevention Program promotes, through collaborative relationships, environmental and policy change initiatives to prevent injury morbidity and mortality. Most Injury Prevention Programs, while population-based, are focused on defined geographical areas or populations served by community-based agencies and local health departments.
The Injury Prevention Program, in keeping with the national trend toward integrating the public health approach into prevention strategies, promoting interagency collaboration and utilizing successful model programs, will continue to work with interagency and interdisciplinary partners toward a broader population-based, wraparound approach for improving health and reducing death and disabilities due to injury.
Unintentional Injury Prevention
Motor Vehicle-Related Injury
Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant funding provided to local health departments may be used to address motor vehicle injury through activities designed to increase the correct use of safety belts/child safety seats and promote pedestrian safety. Strategies utilized include: safety seat check up events; training programs for parents, caregivers and health professionals; community awareness campaigns; and development of community coalitions to identify local problems and implement environmental or policy changes to address these problems.
Falls
Older Adults:
Preventive Health and Health Services Block Grant funding provided to Local Health Departments may be used to address the risk factors for falls among older adults including environmental hazards, medication interactions and physical inactivity. Strategies include home safety assessments to identify and correct injury hazards, provision of safety supplies, fall prevention seminars and exercise classes, medication safety reviews, and training for service providers
Children:
The Program provides technical assistance and resources addressing the prevention of falls in children.
Intentional Injury Prevention
Violence
Violence prevention programs are currently focused on middle and high-school aged youth. They provide after school technology skills exploration, entrepreneurial skills training and training in strategies for conflict resolution, mediation, anger management and job readiness. Most enlist strategies to engage hard to reach youth. Programs incorporate strategies to enhance program staffs’ communication and collaboration with parents, caregivers and / or community groups
Suicide
The suicide prevention training contractor conducts two suicide prevention training sessions in each of five (United Way of CT/Infoline defined) regions of the state for college age students, providers and/or parents/caregivers. The suicide prevention training is frequently conducted on college and university campuses during late summer and fall orientation sessions.
See CT Comprehensive Suicide Prevention Plan (PDF, 642KB)
Violence Against Women
The Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Professional Education and Consultation Contractor conducts workshops for health and human service providers, students and others to identify, assess, intervene with and appropriately refer women who are victims of intimate partner violence and to evaluate the outcomes of the training provided. The contractor will also conduct intimate partner violence related telephone and on-site consultation with providers who have participated in training.
Child Sexual Abuse
The Child Sexual Abuse Contractors operate multidisciplinary Child Sexual Abuse clinics that provide evaluation interviews, comprehensive medical evaluation, crisis counseling, mental health services and appropriate referral to children and families of children suspected of being victims of sexual abuse.
Occupational Injury Prevention
Young Worker Safety
The CT Young Worker Safety Team is a collaborative effort among federal, state, local and regional agencies to raise awareness and provide education and training on adolescent worker safety.
Intentional Injury Prevention
Violence Prevention
Suicide Prevention
Violence Against Women
Child Sexual Abuse
Unintentional Injury Prevention
Motor Vehicle Related Injury Prevention
Falls - Older Adults
Falls – Children
Occupational Injury Prevention
Young Worker Safety
Statistics and Reports
Statute
Sec. 19a-4I Office of Injury Prevention
There shall be, within the department of public health and addiction services, an Office of Injury Prevention, whose purpose shall be to coordinate and expand prevention and control activities related to intentional and unintentional injuries. The duties of said office shall include, but are not limited to, the following: (1) to serve as a data coordinator and analysis source of mortality and injury statistics for other state agencies; (2) to integrate and injury and violence prevention focus within the department of public health and addiction services; (3) to develop collaborative relationships with other state agencies and private and community organizations to establish programs promoting injury prevention, awareness and education to reduce automobile, motorcycle and bicycle injuries and interpersonal violence, including homicide, child abuse, youth violence, domestic violence, sexual assault and elderly abuse; (4) to support the development of comprehensive community-based injury and violence prevention initiatives within cities and towns of the state; and (5) to develop sources of funding to establish and continue programs to promote prevention of intentional and unintentional injuries.
