Injury Prevention is Everyone’s Business – Focus on Fall Prevention

Each year, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) observes National Trauma Awareness Month in May. This year’s theme, Injury Prevention is Everyone’s Business, emphasizes that injury prevention is a collaborative effort.

Emergency medical services (EMS), first responders, healthcare providers, trauma centers, legal systems, educators, and the community all play a role in helping to prevent injuries in Arizona communities.

Trauma injuries in Arizona

Since 2017, falls have consistently been the top cause of trauma injury in Arizona, with 34,084 severe fall-related injuries reported in 2022, that resulted in $4.13 million in hospital charges.

In 2022, Arizona’s 47 trauma centers reported 68,245 trauma cases to the Arizona State Trauma Registry (ASTR). Of those, 6,875 (10%) cases involved children 0 to 17 years of age and 28,521 (41%) cases involved adults older than 65 years of age.

After falls, Motor Vehicle Trauma to an occupant was the second-highest cause of injury in 2022, with 12,253 injuries reported for that year.

Working to prevent falls with first responders

The ADHS Bureau of EMS and Trauma System is committed to supporting the EMS and trauma community in their efforts to prevent falls.

The Bureau’s Education Committee recently developed training to help EMS personnel prevent injuries from falls while serving the community. The Data Quality Assurance team also recently published a falls incidents dashboard, which takes data from the Hospital Discharge Database and the Arizona State Trauma Registry (ASTR) to give a comprehensive analysis of falls throughout the state to aid in fall prevention and care.

All Arizonans can make a difference

Emergency Medical Services providers can help to prevent injury by taking our Training for EMCTs for Patient Fall Prevention.
Arizona residents can help prevent injury by visiting the Arizona Falls Coalition webpage and learning how to prevent falls among children and adults.

Recognizing outstanding EMS and trauma professionals

This year, the Bureau celebrated National Trauma Awareness Month with the first annual Trauma Awards, where the Bureau and stakeholders recognized seven Arizona trauma care professionals for their extraordinary service and contributions to trauma care and increased trauma survival rates. Congratulations to this year’s Trauma Award winners:

Tina Crum, Trauma Registrar of the Year (All Levels)
Heather Miller, Trauma Program Manager of the Year (Level IV)
Shawn Bowker, Injury Prevention Achievement Award (All Levels)
Sheri Fugate, Trauma Program Manager of the Year (Level III)
Kristina Kupanoff, PhD, Research/Academic Achievement Award
Jordan Weinberg, MD, Trauma Medical Director of the Year (All Levels)
Wendy Otten, Trauma Program Manager of the Year (Level I)

The Bureau also awarded outstanding EMCTs from Arizona’s four regions. The EMCT of the Year Awards recognize one outstanding EMCT from each EMS region who has gone above and beyond to serve their communities. Each EMS Regional Council reviewed nominations for this award and presented the awards at the May 16, EMS Council meeting.

Thank you to these first responders for their dedication and passion for saving lives in Arizona. Read more about all of these winners on our website.

By Rachel Garcia|2024-05-30T11:26:13-07:00May 30th, 2024|Prevention|Comments Off

About the Author: Rachel Garcia

Rachel Garcia, MPH, MCHES is the Deputy Assistant Director of Preparedness, Chief of Emergency Medical Service (EMS) and Trauma, and Principal Investigator for the CDC Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity (ELC) Program at the Arizona Department of Health Services. Rachel is an Arizona native and humble public servant who has served in various public health leadership roles in state and local government for more than 15 years. In her current role, she is responsible for overseeing several programs including the ADHS Bureau of EMS and Trauma System, which coordinates, establishes, and administers Arizona’s statewide system of emergency medical services, trauma care, and registry systems. She previously served as the Deputy Chief of Public Health Emergency Preparedness and Response and has assisted with multiple Health Emergency Operations Center responses at ADHS. Before joining the ADHS team, she was an Assistant Director of Public Health in Pinal county, where she oversaw Community and Correctional Health programs. She also served in multiple public health research and community outreach positions at the University of Arizona in Tucson, where she earned her Master of Public Health and Bachelor of Science degrees and completed Susan G. Komen and National Science Foundation fellowships. Rachel is a proud wife and mother of three, who is passionate about education and data-driven public health policies that can improve health for the next generations of Arizonans.