Healthy Communities

Arkansas Violent Death Reporting System

What is the Arkansas Violent Death Reporting System?

Violent death is a major public health issue in Arkansas. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) defines violent death as a death that “results from the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened or actual, against oneself, another person, or a group or community.” The Arkansas Violent Death Reporting System (ARVDRS) collects and links key details of violent deaths- the “who, when, where, and how” – and delivers insights into “why” these deaths transpired.

Arkansas received grant funding from the CDC in 2018 to create the ARVDRS. ARVDRS pulls data from law enforcement reports, death certificates, and coroner/medical examiner reports (including toxicology) and logs this data into a de-identified database. These sources individually provide data that explain violence in a fragmented, narrow context, but when linked together, a more comprehensive picture of violent death is created. The purpose of utilizing the ARVDRS is to implement a plan to collect and disseminate accurate, timely, and comprehensive surveillance data on all violent deaths occurring within the state to better guide prevention efforts.

ARVDRS includes deaths that result from:

Resources:

SUDORS (State Unintentional Death Reporting System)

The State Unintentional Drug Overdose Surveillance (SUDORS) is a supplemental program to the NVDRS which is funded through the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Overdose Data to Action grant. SUDORS collects detailed information on all fatal overdose deaths in Arkansas.

SUDORS increases the timeliness and comprehensiveness of reporting fatal drug overdoses by capturing information from death certificates, coroner and medical examiner reports, and toxicology reports. These sources include details such as route of administration and risk factors that may be associated with a fatal overdose.  The data collected can be analyzed to provide stakeholders with information on overdose prevention response efforts.

Other Resources:

Office Address Phone Fax
Substance Misuse & Injury Prevention 4815 West Markham Street, Slot 10
Little Rock, AR  72205
501-683-0707 501-682-0427

Public Health Accrediation Board
Arkansas Department of Health
© 2017 Arkansas Department of Health. All Rights Reserved. www.healthy.arkansas.gov
4815 W. Markham, Little Rock, AR 72205-3867
1-800-462-0599