Columbia Injury Prevention Center Leads the Science of Safety
Injuries, such as those from motor vehicle crashes, violence, and falls, are the leading cause of death in the first half of the human lifespan. Globally, more people die from injuries and trauma each year than HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined. Despite some progress in preventing injuries, recent years have seen spikes in opioid overdoses, suicides, motor vehicle deaths, adverse childhood experiences, and youth injuries, including those related to violence and mental health challenges.
On November 18, National Injury Prevention Day, Columbia Center for Injury Science and Prevention (CCISP) faculty leaders reflected on more than 15 years of progress toward its mission of generating new science to address the ongoing challenges that injuries create in the U.S., providing actionable research, and training the next generation of injury prevention scientists. One of eleven Injury Control Research Centers, CCISP funding was recently renewed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), as part of a new, highly competitive five-year funding cycle.
The CCISP team of some two dozen injury prevention scientists, from a range of schools at Columbia, including many at Columbia Mailman, works in tandem with regional, national, and government partners to fast-track research and programs to improve the safety, health, and well-being of individuals across the life-course, with a special focus on historically marginalized communities. Charles Branas, Gelman Professor and Chair of Epidemiology at Columbia Mailman, and Sonali Rajan, professor of health promotion and education at Teachers College and adjunct professor of Epidemiology at Columbia Mailman, co-lead the growing Center.
“Our mission at CCISP is to accelerate equity through the science of safety,” says Rajan. “Over the past few years, we have advanced science in this field and made progress on several salient areas of injury science and prevention, including adverse childhood experiences, firearm violence prevention, opioid overdose, among others. Looking ahead, our Center will continue to build on this needed work, and with a strong focus on and commitment to equity and social justice.”
Research and Education
Established in 2008 by its founding director Guohua Li, Finster Professor of Epidemiology and Anesthesiology at Columbia, CCISP and its faculty work on multiple injury prevention issues such as better understanding adolescent depression and social media to prevent suicide; using ridesharing, like Uber and Lyft, to reduce drunk driving and motor vehicle crashes; and preventing school violence well before it happens by investing in efforts that specifically promote better youth mental health and educational outcomes. Other projects aim to predict the effectiveness of opioid overdose prevention programs and develop tools to reduce teen access to lethal means for suicide.
Through CCISP, a variety of training and education initiatives aim to engage community members and cultivate the next generation of injury science professionals, with an emphasis on welcoming individuals from backgrounds that have been historically underrepresented in the field. As part of the MPH Certificate in Injury and Violence Prevention, led by Thelma Mielenz, assistant professor of epidemiology, students pursue research on road safety, opioid overdose, and violence prevention, among other research topics. An Injury Science Laboratory facilitates the use of injury data for student theses, dissertations, and course projects.
The Center also welcomes multiple doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows, as well as practitioners who earn certifications through summer skills workshops. Additionally, with leadership from key Center faculty like Danielle Laraque-Arena, professor of clinical epidemiology and pediatrics, CCISP supports youth-led initiatives, like the recent Youth Advisory Council Non-Violence Summit, during which students developed action plans to address issues like school violence and community safety.
Outreach and Partnership
The Center has hosted annual symposiums and workshops for over a decade, offering a platform for cutting-edge research and innovative approaches to injury and violence prevention for thousands of scientists, community members, and policymakers. In 2022, CCISP faculty helped launch the National Research Conference for the Prevention of Firearm-Related Harms, now in its third year, as well as the Research Society for the Prevention of Firearm-Related Harms, for which Rajan serves as president. This spring, under the leadership of Christopher Morrison, assistant professor of epidemiology, CCISP will host the annual SAVIR (Society for Advancement of Violence and Injury Research) conference for the first time in New York City; some 500 people are anticipated to attend.
Another longstanding CCISP initiative is the Injury Free Coalition for Kids (IFCK), which partners with dozens of universities and medical centers across the nation to direct interventions like safe play areas and elimination of community and home hazards, as well as education and supervised extracurricular activities with mentors. IFCK was founded in 1981 by Barbara Barlow, emeritus professor of epidemiology and IFCK executive director, and Dilenny Roca-Dominguez, IFCK managing director.
CCISP faculty have also provided expert testimony, including a 2020 New York State hearing, on rear-seat motor vehicle safety for teens and adults. Joyce Pressley, associate professor of epidemiology and health policy and management, testified, sharing scientific evidence on gaps in seat belt laws associated with increased injury, death, disability, and related costs. In 2021, Katherine Keyes, professor of epidemiology and director of SPIRIT (Social Psychiatry: Innovation in Research, Implementation, and Training), provided expert testimony on the origins of the opioid epidemic in a federal court in multiple states.
Since its founding, CCISP has partnered with nearly 100 different organizations across sectors— academic research schools and hospitals, non-governmental organizations, government agencies, insurance companies, advocacy groups, global agencies, professional associations—whose missions overlap with those of the Center. “These collaborations are a core part of our mission,” says Branas. “Together, we have brainstormed solutions to emerging and longstanding injury issues, produced cutting-edge research, and participated in the training of a large group of injury prevention professionals, students, and leaders.”