Enhancing the U.S. TBI data infrastructure: geospatial perspective

Abstract

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) has become a rapidly growing global public health problem. It causes premature loss of lives, the interruption of workforce supply pipelines, increased care demand for injured elderly people, and other socio-economic burdens. This paper presents the importance of and the need for a national comprehensive TBI database that incorporates geospatial data components to help tackle the TBI epidemic. It calls for legislative and research actions to enhance the U.S. TBI data infrastructure to make the use of GIS in TBI research possible. Further, it proposes a multi-tiered conceptual framework and associated implementation strategy to establish the proposed national TBI data structure. The enhanced U.S. TBI data infrastructure will provide a feasible platform to utilize the GIS capabilities for location-based mapping, data analysis and modelling. Precision TBI research, targeted outreach, and education will likely facilitate more effective prevention and better care delivery. The enhanced U.S. TBI database infrastructure will serve as a guiding model for other developing nations. Global concerted efforts on TBI can help improve the overall quality of living around the world.