Using Medical Examiner Data to Identify Violent Deaths A Partnership between Oregon State Police and the Department of Human Services

Violent Death Reporting in Oregon (part of NVDRS) Identify violent deaths as suicides, homicides, legal interventions, undetermined deaths, and accidental firearm deaths Search medical examiner database by manner of death to find cases

Electronic ME database Filemaker database that includes ME reports for all counties in Oregon Allows data input at scene of death via laptops Can search on many fields to identify cases of interest Import and export reports to other applications Includes criteria for unexpected deaths and noting the mechanism of injury

Violent Death Reporting System Confirm violent death by comparison to death certificate and law enforcement data Link data from all sources into one database for Oregon Analyze incident information for trends and death circumstances

Violent Deaths in Oregon, % suicide 12.6% homicide 27% domestic violence related 31% other arguments 10% drug-related 5% gang related 16% undetermined deaths 0.4% accidental firearm deaths

Suicide Rates per 100,000 by Age & Gender, Oregon, 2003 Oregon Vital Statistics, 2003

Goals of Violent Death Reporting Analyze the circumstances in violent incidents Provide data for a state-wide picture of violence Generate prevention strategies and disseminate findings and strategies

Further Information on NVDRS ipe/nvdrs/index.cfm facts.htm