Center Spotlight: Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center (KIPRC)

Lexington, Kentucky

Nestled at the University of Kentucky College of Public Health, in a city known for its rolling bluegrass hills, thoroughbred horses, bourbon distilleries, and die-hard Wildcats fans, you’ll find one of SAVIR’s longtime member organizations: the Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center (KIPRC).

A Unique Partnership

Founded in 1994, KIPRC operates through a distinctive dual role. It functions both as an academic injury prevention research center and as the official “bona fide agent” of the Kentucky Department for Public Health (KDPH) for statewide injury prevention and control. This partnership between KDPH and the University of Kentucky allows KIPRC to bridge the gap between rigorous research and real-world public health practice across the Commonwealth.

The center’s work spans a broad range of injury topics, including community injury prevention, drug overdose prevention, intentional injuries, motor vehicle injuries, occupational safety and health, and trauma.

Programs Making an Impact

KIPRC runs several notable surveillance and prevention programs:

• Kentucky FACE (Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation): An occupational fatality prevention and surveillance program that tracks every workplace fatality in the state. FACE staff conduct on-site investigations of workplace deaths and produce investigative reports with targeted recommendations to help prevent future tragedies.
• Kentucky Overdose Data to Action: Focused on drug overdose morbidity and mortality surveillance and prevention efforts statewide.
• Kentucky Violence and Injury Prevention Program (KVIPP): Supports the implementation and evaluation of injury prevention programs addressing adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), traumatic brain injury, older adult falls, transportation safety, and military-connected youth.
• KY AVERT (Advancing Violence Epidemiology in Real Time): A surveillance system designed to speed up the availability of data on firearm injuries of any intent, violence-related injuries (firearm, sexual, interpersonal, youth, intimate partner, self-directed, child abuse, and more), and mental health-related conditions.

Beyond surveillance, KIPRC prioritizes accessibility, fulfilling data requests from local and state partners at no cost, typically within a two-week turnaround, to support better program planning, resource allocation, and data-driven decision-making across Kentucky.

Training the Next Generation

KIPRC has a long history of hosting student practicums, giving students the chance to apply classroom knowledge to real-world injury prevention work. These opportunities are currently available to students at the University of Kentucky and Transylvania University.

The center also maintains a robust library of public-facing resources, including reports, alerts, fact sheets, and infographics covering a variety of injury prevention topics, along with enduring educational materials hosted through UK HealthCare’s CECentral.

A Long-Standing SAVIR Partner

KIPRC has been an active part of the SAVIR community for many years, with staff and faculty serving on committees and regularly attending the annual SAVIR conference, which the team counts among their favorite events of the year.

Growing Their Reach

Looking ahead, KIPRC is hoping to raise its profile beyond Kentucky’s borders and welcomes input from fellow SAVIR members and centers on how to expand awareness of their work nationally.

When They’re Not Crunching Data…

Every organization needs a little fun, and at KIPRC that means potlucks! The team gathers three to four times a year to celebrate colleagues’ successes over shared food, and recently added a new tradition to the mix: bake-offs.

Want to learn more about KIPRC’s work or connect with the team? Reach out to Amber Kizewski, Director of Operations, at Amber.Kizewski@uky.edu, or follow them on social media @kiprcnews.