Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit Hosts Panel on Alcohol's Role as a Public Health Risk Factor

On Tuesday, February 15, 2018, the Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit (JH-IIRU) hosted “Alcohol: Leading Risk Factor for Public Health” at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School and in collaboration with the Johns Hopkins Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The event served as the kick-off event for JH-IIRU’s 10^th anniversary celebration schedule in which it will host and participate in a number of events focusing on the Unit’s critical research and training areas.

“This year we’re celebrating a decade of innovation and research in global injury prevention and control,” said JH-IIRU director Dr. Adnan Hyder. “Over ten years, we’ve made such incredible strides in injury research across the globe. We look forward to what’s in store over the next decade.”

Dr. Hyder welcomed guests and introduced the event’s presenters, which included Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth director David Jernigan, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine senior program officer Amy Geller, and JH-IIRU doctoral candidate Nukhba Zia.

In her presentation, Geller outlined her work in the recent report, “Getting to Zero Alcohol-Impaired Driving Fatalities: A Comprehensive Approach to a Persistent Problem.” The publication was produced with support from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and highlights interventions and actions to reduce alcohol-impaired driving fatalities. Featured as an appendix in the report is “Reducing Alcohol-Impaired Driving: Lessons from a Global Review,” written by Dr. Hyder and JH-IIRU research associate Andres Vecino-Ortiz, with help from Zia.

Following the series of presentations, Jernigan, Geller, and Zia engaged in an interactive Q&A session, where participants asked compelling questions ranging from international helmet laws to the role of alcohol in regards to the development of autonomous vehicles.

“Nearly 20 percent of all global road traffic deaths are attributed to alcohol consumption,” said Zia. “This is clearly an international problem and it’s been so valuable to work alongside these experts to help change the landscape of road safety.”

To watch video from the event, please click here. To read the full report, click here.