OVERVIEW of the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) Compiled from CDC sources as part of the dissemination of NVDRS: Stories from the Frontlines of Violent Death Surveillance

Violent deaths in the U.S. >50,000 Americans died from violence in 2010  38,000 by suicide  16,000 by homicide Homicide & suicide affect young persons Elderly have high suicide rates Source: CDC

What is the NVDRS? Created in 2002, the NVDRS is a surveillance system that pulls together data on violent deaths  Homicides (including domestic /intimate partner violence, child maltreatment, elder abuse)  Suicides  Homicide-suicides  Legal intervention (killed by law enforcement)  Accidental deaths of undetermined intent  Unintentional firearm fatalities Source: CDC

What is the NVDRS’ purpose? Provide a clearer understanding of violent deaths so they can be prevented Inform decision makers & program planners at national, state & local levels about the magnitude, trends & characteristics of violent deaths Data collected by states, coordinated by CDC Source: CDC

Why is the NVDRS needed? Multiple sources collect violent death data…  Police, homicide detectives  Coroners  Medical examiners  Crime lab investigators …but these data typically are not combined in a systematic manner to provide a complete picture of a violent death Other surveillance system are based on individual deaths, not the entire incident

NVDRS collects & links data COLLECTS facts from 4 major sources about the same incident:  Death certificates  Coroner/medical examiner reports  Law enforcement reports  Crime laboratories LINKS data that occurred in the same incident into a usable, anonymous database Violent death incident can include 1 victim or multiple victims (e.g homicide-suicide, multiple victim homicide) Source: CDC

NVDRS: A more complete picture NVDRS captures circumstances that may have contributed to a death Relationship between victim & perpetrator(s) Life stresses, e.g. relationship, financial problem, recent death of family member Mental health status, e.g. depression Existing health condition, e.g. chronic disease, terminal illness, alcohol/drug use Other crimes, e.g. robbery, committed along with homicide Circumstances unique to intimate partner violence, e.g. prior incidents of abuse Source: CDC

Other data sources can be added Domestic/intimate partner violence: Domestic Fatality Review Team data Child maltreatment: Child Fatality Review Team data Source: CDC

18 states currently participate Alaska Colorado Georgia Kentucky Maryland Massachusetts Michigan New Jersey New Mexico North Carolina Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Rhode Island South Carolina Utah Virginia Wisconsin Source: CDC GOAL: Participation from all U.S. states & territories

For more information NVDRS/