Violent Death Reporting in Maryland: Demographic Variability in Data Completeness.

Publisher: American Public Health Association Country of Publication: United States NLM ID: 1254074 Publication Model: Print-Electronic Cited Medium: Internet ISSN: 1541-0048 (Electronic) Linking ISSN: 00900036 NLM ISO Abbreviation: Am J Public Health Subsets: MEDLINE

Publication: Washington, DC : American Public Health Association
Original Publication: New York [etc.]

Socioeconomic Factors*; Homicide/*statistics & numerical data ; Population Surveillance/*methods ; Suicide/*statistics & numerical data; Adolescent ; Adult ; Age Distribution ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Data Accuracy ; Female ; Homicide/ethnology ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Male ; Maryland ; Racial Groups ; Sex Distribution ; Suicide/ethnology ; Young Adult

Objectives: To analyze the completeness of precipitating circumstance information recorded in the Maryland Violent Death Reporting System and identify limitations that could affect the system's utility.
Methods: We reviewed all violent deaths among Maryland residents for the years 2003 through 2014 (n = 19 161). We assessed the presence of precipitating circumstance data (abstracted from medical examiner and police reports) by manner of death and demographic characteristics. We further evaluated homicide records with multivariable regression.
Results: Demographic variation in circumstance reporting was most pronounced for homicide. Circumstances were known for 53.2% of homicide cases, and this percentage was lower among non-Latino Blacks (48.2%), males (50.7%), those aged 18 to 25 years (47.9%), those residing in jurisdictions with higher-than-average homicide rates (46.1%), and those who died outside in a public place (43.4%) or in a correctional facility (48.9%). With the exception of male gender, these factors were significantly associated with circumstance reporting when we controlled for demographic and situational variables.
Conclusions: Circumstance reporting was least likely among groups most at risk for homicide in Maryland. Collection of circumstance data for the most affected groups should be strengthened to help develop better prevention strategies.

Inj Prev. 2006 Dec;12 Suppl 2:ii28-ii32. (PMID: 17170167)
Inj Prev. 2016 Apr;22 Suppl 1:i6-11. (PMID: 26718549)
MMWR Surveill Summ. 2016 Aug 19;65(10):1-42. (PMID: 27537325)

U17 CE002604 United States CE NCIPC CDC HHS; U38 OT000143 United States OT OSTLTS CDC HHS

Date Created: 20170818 Date Completed: 20171002 Latest Revision: 20211204

20240105

PMC5607672

10.2105/AJPH.2017.303943

28817327