TNTT
Trauma Nurses Talk Tough—About Saving Your Life!
Legacy Emanuel Hospital and Health Center
2801 N. Gantenbein Avenue, Room 2012
Portland, Oregon 97227
Telephone: 503-413-4960
Email: Joanne Fairchild, jmfairch@lhs.org
For more information, email TNTT.
TNTT is a 2007 recipient of the American Hospital Association's NOVA Award for effective, collaborative programs focused on improving community health status
Trauma Nurses Talk Tough (TNTT) was developed in 1986 by three trauma nurses who wanted to put an end to the carnage they see every day as a result of unnecessary injuries and deaths. TNTT programs help people take control of the risks in their lives by teaching reasons for risk avoidance behavior, integrated with asset/skill building and empowerment education. The programs serve 56,000 people of all ages each year in Oregon alone.
TNTT activities fall into three major categories:
TNTT Programs
TNTT programs are designed to be presented by medical personnel who work with trauma patients and patients' families and have seen first-hand the unnecessary death and grief caused by risky behavior. Programs offered include:
Attendees of TNTT programs receive:
- Empowerment education
- Increased knowledge of the effects of high risk behavior
- Recommendations and information for injury prevention
- Asset-building recommendations for children, teens and families
- Increased communication between family members
- Assertiveness and refusal skill tools
- Strategies and ideas to increase safety in families
Pre- and post-surveys, and for some programs, follow-up surveys have indicated effectiveness in self-reported behavior changes after attending TNTT programs. See Testimonials for comments from people who have experienced the TNTT classes on the importance of wearing seat belts and safety helmets.
Public Policy and Legislative Advocacy
One of the most significant outcomes of the TNTT program is the effect its legislative advocacy has had on safety in Oregon as a whole.
According to the 2004 Oregon Transportation Safety Action Plan, Oregon’s traffic death rate has fallen dramatically during the last 20 years. In 1983, the statewide traffic death rate was 2.7 deaths per 100 million vehicle miles traveled. In 2002, the rate was 1.26 people killed per 100 million vehicle miles traveled, or about 15 percent below the national average. It is not a coincidence that the traffic death rate has decreased at the same time TNTT has been active. Oregon has made a concerted effort to teach young people how to be safe and avoid risky behavior. The TNTT program has been a major part of this effort. Oregon’s Safety Action Plan states: "Certain safety programs targeted at children and youth have been demonstrated to be successful and should continue to be made available statewide. These programs include examples such as . . . Trauma Nurses Talk Tough."
Spreading Our SuccessTrauma Nurses Talk Tough is an internationally recognized program used by hospitals, fire departments and private ambulance companies throughout the United States. See For Trauma Educators for information about how you can present TNTT in your community.
For further information about TNTT programs, please contact Simone Carter at 503-413-4960 or email TNTT.
Last updated: 7/26/2007
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