Supervisor: Prof. Michael Reade

Co-Supervisors: Prof.  Kirsten Vallmuur, Prof. Cate Cameron, Prof. Kerrie Mengersen

Thesis title: The spatio-temporal epidemiology of trauma in Queensland 

Thesis Summary: Mature trauma systems strive to ensure that all patients receive the ‘right care, at the right place, at the right time’, aiming to reduce disparities in trauma outcomes with respect to location of injury. Previous research in Australia and overseas has produced mixed results: some studies have found that rural or remote injury event location may be associated with a higher risk of death while others have demonstrated that patients who survive transport from remote areas to reach definitive care may have equivalent outcomes Together, these findings suggest that the effect of the organisation of state-wide retrieval and trauma systems may be significant. However, to date few Australian studies have employed a comprehensive suite of disease mapping and spatial analysis techniques to characterise variation in the incidence and outcome of injury at the level of a state-wide trauma system. This research aims to evaluate the feasibility of a system of gathering and analysing linked data to ascertain areas within Queensland that exhibit particularly higher than expected trauma incidence and case fatality rates in order to identify opportunities to reduce preventable trauma deaths.