The UNC IPRC Outreach Core develops training and support programs that build capacity in the injury prevention workforce. It also ensures that the Center’s scientific products are efficiently disseminated to injury prevention communities using tools and messaging that translate readily into evidence-based practice and policy.
In association with the North Carolina Injury & Violence Prevention Branch, the University of North Carolina Injury Prevention Research Center is launching a multi-state opioid overdose prevention initiative. This initiative will connect harm reduction practitioners from Central Appalachia in order to build a network for peers to share their knowledge and expertise. Through this project, we plan to create a peer-to-peer learning network. The learning network will support harm reduction work in communities across Central Appalachia, including grassroots community groups and public health practitioners, to identify successful strategies for addressing the challenges presented by the opioid overdose epidemic.
NC Governor Roy Cooper; Steve Marshall, IPRC Director; Mandy Cohen, Secretary of the NCDHHS
UNC IPRC prepares and provides legislative briefings and fact sheets to policymakers, including the NC state legislature and their staff. Fact sheets and presentations are also provided to key practitioner and advocacy groups, such as the NC Medical Board, to utilize in their efforts to support safety legislation. Additionally, the IPRC participates in “Hill Day” visits to elected federal officials. These provide an opportunity for IPRC leadership to meet with federal elected officials and/or their staff to share key information related to injury and violence prevention priorities.
Scott Proescholdbell, NC DHHS; Andrew Nam, Office of Senator Thom Tillis; Beth Moracco, IPRC Associate Director
We collaborate with partners (including UNC Federal Affairs, other Injury Control Research Centers, Safe States Alliance, and the National Violence Prevention Network) in planning these visits. In 2021, UNC IPRC supported and attended several events on Capitol Hill. The most recent of these was National Violent Death Reporting System Hill Day 2018. Dr. Beth Moracco (IPRC’s Associate Director) and Scott Proescholdbell, MPH (IVPB lead epidemiologist) visited with Senators Burr (R-NC) and Tillis (R-NC) and Congressmen Price (D-NC), Walker (R-NC), and McHenry (R-NC).
The IPRC’s outreach materials, which highlight evidence-based information related to injury and violence prevention, have assisted policymakers in developing and considering potential legislation regarding opioid overdose prevention, motorcycle helmet laws, fireworks sales, driver licensing, and return to play following concussion.
Injury-Free NC aims to promote workforce capacity in the primary prevention of injury and violence throughout our state. A workforce capacity needs assessment of the North Carolina injury and violence prevention workforce identified specific training needs among practitioners at both local and state levels. In response to these needs, the IPRC is collaborating with the Division of Public Health Injury and Violence Prevention Branch (DHHS IVPB) to develop and implement training programs and tools for local practitioners through the Injury-Free NC Academy and workshops to increase the capacity of researchers and practitioners to utilize data from the NC Violent Death Reporting System (NC-VDRS). Recent training programs included building the capacity of multi-sector teams across NC to establish harm reduction programs, including syringe exchange programs; and implementing best practices for suicide prevention with youth.
Created in 2012, the Injury-Free NC Academy trains teams of diverse community stakeholders in injury and violence prevention (IVP), building community-level capacity for the organizations to implement and sustain initiatives to reduce injury and violence in their communities. The Academy is designed to provide public health practitioners with injury topic-specific content and key skills (e.g., coalition building, community programming, and logic model building) that enable them to implement evidence-based interventions in their communities. Each year, Injury-Free NC Academy solicits teams of IVP practitioners from across organizations and disciplines to participate in two 2-day trainings, with coaching, technical assistance, and follow-up support to help the teams apply what they learned in the Academy.
Given the decades-long relationship between the IPRC and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, Division of Public Health, Injury and Violence Prevention Branch (NC IVPB), and the expertise housed within each, the two organizations are a natural fit to deliver these comprehensive training programs through the Injury-Free NC Academy and partner on Academy oversight and governance.
UNC Healthy Solutions provides capacity-building support to projects seeking to change the health of populations by preventing injury, violence, and chronic disease. The team translates evidence-based methods for communities and tribes. The IPRC currently supports the UNC Healthy Solutions Team in their work with the Indian Health Services Injury Prevention Program.
Learn more about our work with the UNC Healthy Solutions team here.
Learn more about the IPRC’s outreach activities related to our five focus areas:
The IPRC’s Training and Education Core includes collaborative training programs informed by the needs and perspectives of injury and violence (IVP) practitioners –providing education, mentoring, and training programs that inspire and educate IVP practitioners and researchers.
Our Seminars, Symposia, and Speakers Series take place on the UNC campus and throughout the state and include UNC-affiliated researchers, visiting lecturers, and subject-matter experts. These events provide a forum for researchers, practitioners, advocates, and policy staff to connect around various injury and violence prevention topics. Learn more about our Patricia F. Waller Annual Lecture here.
IPRC has recently launched a webinar series! Learn more here.
Visit our Events page to learn more about past and upcoming seminars, symposia, and speakers series.
The IPRC supports two courses in IVP that are taught in the Gillings School of Global Public Health. These courses focus on unintentional injuries from a public health perspective and intentional injuries (violence) using similar perspectives and concepts. Concepts covered in these courses includes the Haddon Matrix and the Haddon Countermeasures, active and passive prevention strategies, using framing concepts for communication and messaging, community-based injury prevention strategies and capacity building, and injury surveillance. In-depth class sessions address a range of injury/violence topics in detail, and the material is taught using a combination of lectures, classroom discussion, readings, and project work.
EPID/MHCH/HBEH 625 “Unintentional Injury as a Public Health Problem”
Fall Semester | Credits: 3
Lead Instructor: Yvonne Golightly, PhD PT (Assistant Professor, Epidemiology)
This course examines the causes and consequences of injury, predominantly unintentional injury, through the use of interactive classroom exercises and seminars led by experts in injury control. The course covers core concepts in injury prevention and control, including the epidemiology of unintentional injury, prevention strategies, behavioral models, messaging framing, the Haddon Matrix and Countermeasures, and strategic community-driven injury prevention. Detailed information is presented on a range of substantive topics in unintentional injury, including opioid disorders and overdose, falls in older adults, occupational injuries, burns and thermal injuries, agricultural injuries, musculoskeletal and sports-related injuries, and motor vehicle, pedestrian, and bicycle injuries. Prevention of unintentional injuries in both domestic (USA) and global settings is discussed.
EPID/MHCH/HBEH 626 “Violence as a Public Health Problem”
Spring Semester | Credits: 3
Lead Instructor: Meghan Shanahan, PhD (Assistant Professor, Maternal and Child Health)
This companion course examines the causes and consequences of violence (intentional injury). The course covers the epidemiology of violence, causes and consequences of violence, structural determinants of violence, community-based violence prevention strategies, and violence surveillance. We also discuss a range of substantive topics in intentional injury, including child maltreatment, gender-based violence, suicide and self-harm, and firearm-related violence.
This is an exciting opportunity for masters and doctoral students from diverse academic, professional, and demographic backgrounds to gain hands-on experience in IVP, including skills in a broad range of methodological approaches for IVP-related research, programs, and policy design; and translating research to practice for policymakers, health care providers, community organizations, and other partners in IVP.
IVP Fellows work with IPRC-affiliated faculty mentors to identify opportunities to get experience conducting IVP-related research, programming, or policy. The fellowship provides $3,000 per year to support travel, conference and meeting attendance, and other professional development or training opportunities. Limited, additional funding may be available for specific activities or opportunities on an ad hoc basis. For more information, contact Leah Taraskiewicz, Managing Director of Outreach, Capacity Building, and Partnerships (leahkt@unc.edu) or Beth Moracco, IPRC Associate Director (moracco@email.unc.edu)
Learn about our current IVP Fellows here
