Use of Washington State newspapers for submersion injury surveillance

To evaluate the usefulness of newspapers as a surveillance tool for submersion injury, the proportion of submersion events and important details reported in Washington State newspapers was determined. It was also determined whether a letter sent to newspaper editors to encourage reporting changed the proportion and content of reported submersion events. Newspaper articles regarding submersion were collected from 225 Washington newspapers from 1993 - 1998. These articles were linked to computerised state death and hospital records. In conclusion, results showed that newspapers failed to report about one half of fatal submersions and three quarters of submersions that resulted in hospitalisation. An effort to improve reporting was associated with an increase in the proportion of pediatric drownings that were reported, but a consistent improvement in content was found. The usefulness of newspaper articles as a surveillance tool may be limited.