An analysis of emergency department visits for injuries among students at a large U.S. public university

Abstract Background Injuries are a significant source of morbidity and mortality among college students.While previous studies identified the most common causes of injuries among college students globally, none have examined electronic health record narratives through a qualitative lens to better understand the circumstances behind these injuries. In this study, we analyzed narrative details of emergency department encounters for injuries by college students to identify factors that can inform injury prevention efforts. Methods We used qualitative content analysis to evaluate narrative details of encounters to capture the setting, mode or mechanism, and the type of injury for 794 emergency department visits for injuries, poisonings, and certain other consequences of external causes (designated as INJ) by college students between August 16, 2021 and May 10, 2022. Results The majority of INJ visits occurred among males (55.3%), undergraduates (79.2%), and domestic students (85.0%). The most commonly identified mode for events leading to INJ visits was a bend/fall/slip ( n = 241, 30.4%), while the most common outcomes of events leading to INJ visits were lacerations ( n = 160, 20.2%) or head injuries ( n = 127, 16.0%). Sports or recreation ( n = 197, 24.8%) was the most commonly identified event setting, and of all INJ encounters, 86 (10.8%) were definitively associated with alcohol or other drug exposure. Sixteen visits (2.0%) resulted in immediate admission. Conclusions College student injuries, poisonings, or other consequences of external causes that lead to emergency care are due to a wide range of underlying causes highlighting the need for a multi-pronged approach to injury prevention on campus.