Central Registry

What is the Central Registry?

The Central Registry* is a database of information about people in Georgia who have suffered a traumatic brain or spinal cord injury. The data includes names, addresses and other information about people who were admitted as inpatients to the hospital, or treated and released in the hospital's emergency department or outpatient clinic.

The Commission oversees the Central Registry and sends information to people who are identified in the data. According to Trust Fund Executive Director Craig Young: "It's an invaluable tool because it helps us reach out to many Georgians who may not realize what resources are available - including awards from the Trust Fund itself." This is the primary use of the Registry information.

People who receive information from the Trust Fund decide for themselves whether to follow up and contact the services listed.

The Fund also analyzes the Central Registry data as it's received to monitor incidence rates for traumatic injuries.

How does the Central Registry gather information about people with traumatic brain or spinal cord injuries?

Georgia hospitals are responsible for obtaining information about the injured people they treat. Each quarter, the Georgia Hospital Association (GHA) sends the Commission information that it has gathered from the Georgia Discharge Data Set (GDDS). The GDDS* is the program used by Georgia�s Department of Human Resources - Division of Public Health to collect and report state-mandated data throughout Georgia. It includes data from 100% of Georgia civilian hospitals.

For more information about the Georgia Hospital Association, please visit www.gha.org.

Does the Central Registry include the name of every person in Georgia who has a traumatic brain or spinal injury?

Unfortunately, no. The Commission took over administration of the Registry on July 1, 2004.

The Registry was created in 1981 and, over time, Registry administrators, along with patient and other disability advocates, realized that the hospitals were not reporting every case. As a result, many people with traumatic injuries were not getting critical information about the resources available to them.

The Commission learned about the problem and in 2003 began to work with the Division of Rehabilitation Services (the DRS, part of the Georgia Department of Labor) to find ways to improve the Registry. As a result of this partnership, the Commission offered to take over administration of the Registry and make significant changes to the Registry's operational procedures. The Department of Labor agreed and, through the passage of SB 582 in 2004, transferred operation of the Registry to the Trust Fund. (The complete text of the Central Registry statute is listed in OCGA 31-18-1.)

Also, the GHA data only includes people who were treated in a hospital facility for their injury. This means that anyone who went to their doctor's office, public health department, or local clinic is not included in the Registry. The Registry also does not contain information from Veteran's Administration or military hospitals.  The Commission wants to make sure that every Georgian who sustains a traumatic brain or spinal injury is counted and receives information on resources. Thus, the Commission has developed a long-term plan to work with physicians, public health departments, and other health officials to try to identify anyone with a traumatic injury.

How can I, or someone I know, be added to the Central Registry?

As of 2004, if you were treated in a hospital facility you are included in the Registry. If you were not treated by a hospital, or were injured prior to 2004, the Commission would like to add you to the Registry. Please click here to go to the self-registry page.  

This gives the state a better understanding of the number of Georgians with traumatic brain and spinal injuries and makes sure that you receive information on available resources in Georgia. 

Why was the Registry created?

In the late 1970s, citizens in South Georgia approached legislators to discuss the fact that many teenagers with spinal cord injuries were dying from their injuries because they didn't have access to critical services. To address this, the Georgia General Assembly passed legislation in 1981 to create the Central Registry.

House Bill 3 required hospitals to report people who sustained a spinal cord injury to the Division of Rehabilitation Services (DRS). The DRS then sent follow-up information about services and resources to the people identified by the hospitals. The legislation was amended in 1985 to include reporting of people with traumatic brain injuries.

From its creation in 1981 until the Commission took over, the Central Registry was operated by the DRS through its Roosevelt Warm Springs Institute for Rehabilitation.

Who else uses the Central Registry data?

In Georgia, the Division of Public Health's Injury Control and Prevention Branch routinely assesses the GDDS* data, as well as vital statistics, death certificate data to describe the burden of traumatic injuries in Georgia. The data is analyzed by race, sex, age, and geographical location. For more information about the Injury Prevention Section please visit the website at http://health.state.ga.us/programs/injuryprevention.

For more information about the Central Registry, contact the Commission office at 888-233-5760 or 

info-bsitf@dhr.state.ga.us.

* The Commission's Registry and the GDDS database comply with the privacy and security safeguards required by the Health Care Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA). All information is kept confidential.