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 2009, there were an additional 11 nonfatal hospitalizations and 123 emergency department visits due to an injury.
Injuries to Miami-Dade County Residents During 2009
- Injuries were responsible for 1,240 resident deaths in 2009, an increase of 2% from 1,210 injury-related deaths in 2008.
- Unintentional (accidental) injuries accounted for 749 (62%) of injury deaths, followed by suicides (239, 20%) and homicides (221, 18%).
- Firearm injuries and Motor Vehicle Traffic injuries were tied for the leading cause of injury-related death (286, 24%) followed by Poisoning (171, 14%).
- Firearm deaths decreased for the second year in a row from 318 deaths in 2007 to 286 in 2009. Fifty-eight percent of firearm deaths in 2009 were homicides, 40% were suicides and there were 4 (1%) unintentional firearm deaths.
- Injuries were responsible for 14,155 nonfatal hospitalizations to county residents in 2009. Falls (47%) were the leading cause of injury hospitalizations followed by Struck By or Against a Person/Object (14%) and Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes (11%).
- Injuries were responsible for 152,949 nonfatal emergency department (ED) visits to county residents in 2009. Falls (29%) were the leading cause of ED visits followed by Struck By or Against an Object/Person (14%) and Motor Vehicle Traffic Crashes (11%).
