Overview
The Miami-Dade County Injury Surveillance System (MDCISS) was initiated in 2004 to obtain accurate and timely information on the incidence and determinants of fatal and nonfatal injuries that occur to Miami-Dade residents. The objective of the MDCISS is to provide data that can be used to initiate or assist injury prevention programs and help measure their effectiveness. The MDCISS is a collaborative effort between the Miami-Dade County Health Department, the Injury Free Coalition for Kids-Miami, the University of Miami and Jackson Health Systems. It has been supported, in part, through funding from The Children’s Trust and the Health Foundation of South Florida.
Injuries are a major public health problem in Miami-Dade County and are the leading cause of death for county residents between the ages 1 to 44 years. Further, for every injury-related death to a county resident in 2008, there were an additional 11 nonfatal hospitalizations and 120 emergency department visits due to an injury.
Injuries During 2008
- Injuries were responsible for 1,240 resident deaths in 2008, a decrease of 6% from 1,323 injury-related deaths in 2007.
- Unintentional (accidental) injuries accounted for 746 (60%) of injury deaths, followed by homicides (255 deaths, 21%), and suicides (236 deaths, 19%).
- Firearm injuries and Motor Vehicle Traffic injuries were tied for the leading cause of injury-related death (308, 25%) followed by Poisonings (168, 14%).
- Firearm deaths decreased 3% from 318 deaths in 2007 to 308 in 2008. Sixty-five percent of firearm deaths were homicides, 35% were suicides and there were no unintentional firearm deaths.
- Drowning is the leading cause of all death to children aged 1-4 years old and was responsible for 7 deaths in 2008. The most common site for a child drowning death was a residential swimming pool (6 of 7 deaths).
- Suffocation is the leading cause of injury-related death to infants less than 1 year old. Ten county infants died from suffocation in 2008, with 8 occurring while they slept in a bed or crib.
- Injuries were responsible for 14,139 nonfatal hospitalizations to county residents in 2008. Falls were responsible for 47% of all nonfatal injury hospitalizations followed by Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes (15%) and Poisonings (12%).
- Injuries were responsible for 148,414 nonfatal emergency department (ED) visits to county residents in 2008. Falls (28%) were the leading cause of nonfatal ED visits followed by being Struck By or Against an Object/Person (14%) and Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes (11%).
