Death and severe injuries on NZ roads: different things to different people

Many sources record road-related deaths and injuries but use different definitions. Achieving safer roads requires an accurate description of road trauma. To create a comprehensive picture of road-related trauma, a collaboration of five agencies in New Zealand brought together data from seven databases and matched individuals. The resulting analysis allowed a true representation of road trauma beginning with all injuries, the number presenting to hospital, hospital admissions, serious life-threatening injuries, and deaths. The study addressed important gaps in the understanding of road trauma. It demonstrated that interagency collaboration can address deficiencies in individual databases and allow a common definition for road traffic injuries.