Legacy Health Systems - Trauma Nurses Talk Tough

What is it?

The Trauma Nurses Talk Tough (TNTT) program features nurses, who witness injuries and heartache firsthand, counseling young people about the consequences of reckless driving and other unsafe behaviors. The program started modestly with an in-service session for local school nurses. Today it includes age-appropriate slide and lecture presentations that depict true stories of people injured as a result of unsafe behaviors and the attendant consequences. The series is presented to about 35,000 elementary, middle and high school students each year. TNTT extended its courses to families because the organization realized that kids might have parents that don’t understand the impact of unsafe behaviors and might be setting poor examples in terms of seat-belt use and driving habits.

Court-ordered classes began after TNTT was approached by probation officers and juvenile and traffic court systems that suggested offenders might be more likely to change their behavior by learning more about the long-term consequences of their actions rather than by paying fines or serving time. Five programs aimed at different audiences have been developed. In lieu of fines, attendees pay fees for the courses, which help underwrite other TNTT initiatives, such as selling more than 9,000 safety helmets annually at below-cost.

Who is it for?

People participate in school-based presentations, court-ordered classes, safety fairs and community clinics throughout the Portland area. TNTT is spreading its mission; it has developed extensive training materials, available at a modest cost. Twenty hospitals in 12 states use TNTT resources.

Why do they do it?

TNTT is designed to help individuals, especially young people, make better decisions about their safety behavior.

Impact

Each year, approximately 56,000 people participate in the program. More than half of the attendees report having improved safety behaviors following participation in TNTT programs. TNTT has also been instrumental in changing public policies that promote safety, such as helmet laws for all riders and passengers (up to age 16) of bicycles, skateboards, scooters and rollerblades.

Contact: Simone Carter
Trauma Community Education Coordinator
Telephone: 503-413-2826
E-mail: srcarter@lhs.org