WORLD REPORT ON VIOLENCE AND HEALTH

In October, 2002, the World Health Organization will release the much anticipated World Report on Violence and Health. Barry Weisberg will produce a commentary on this report for publication on the web page.

The excerpt below is from the World Health Organization:

http://www5.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/main

The goals of the Report are to raise awareness about the problem of violence globally, to make the case that violence is preventable, and to highlight the crucial role that public health has to play in addressing its causes and consequences.

Objectives of the Report

The specific objectives of the Report are to describe the magnitude and impact of violence throughout the world; describe the key risk factors for violence; summarize the types of intervention and policy responses that have been tried and what is known about their effectiveness; and make recommendations for action at local, national, and international levels.

Content of the Report

The Report examines a broad spectrum of violence including child abuse and neglect by caregivers, youth violence, violence by intimate partners, sexual violence, elder abuse, suicide, and collective violence. One chapter is devoted to each of these seven topics. The Report also includes a statistical annex with country and regional data derived from the WHO Mortality and Morbidity Database and a list of resources for violence prevention.

Status of the Report

The Report has generated an enormous amount of interest and support in recent months. The preface and foreword have been signed respectively by Nelson Mandela and Gro Harlem Brundtland. Five laureates of the Nobel Peace Prize, including Kofi Annan, Oscar Arias, Jody Williams and representatives of the International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War and Méédecins sans Frontièères, have provided brief statements of support to appear on the Report's back cover. In addition more than 25 major public health and medical journals have agreed to address the Report in some form at or near the time of its release (editorials, articles, special issues, etc).

Release of the Report

The global release of the Report and an accompanying summary will take place on 3 October 2002 in Brussels. The scheduled events will be hosted by the Government of Belgium and Dr Brundtland. Other personalities will be invited to participate. The global release will be followed by a series of country events later in the year. These will signify the beginning of a year long Global Campaign on Violence Prevention, involving discussions, debates any many other activities about violence and concrete and practical ways to implement the recommendations of the Report.

Main Messages of the Report

Violence is a major public health problem worldwide. Each year, millions of people die as the result of injuries due to violence. Many more survive their injuries, but live with a permanent disability. Violence is among the leading causes of death among people aged 15-44 years worldwide, accounting for 14% of deaths among males and 7% of deaths among females.

In addition to death and disability, violence contributes to a variety of other health consequences. These include depression, alcohol and substance abuse, smoking, eating and sleeping disorders, and HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases.

Violence, however, is preventable –– it is not an intractable social problem or an inevitable part of the human condition. The wide variation in violence among and within nations over time suggests that violence is the product of complex, yet modifiable social and environmental factors.

Violence results from interplay of individual, relationship, community, and societal factors. Some of the factors associated with violence include a history of early aggression, impulsiveness, harsh punitive discipline, poor monitoring and supervision of children, associating with delinquent peers, witnessing violence, drug trafficking, access to firearms, gender and income inequality, and norms that support violence as a way to resolve conflict.

Creating safe and healthy communities around the globe requires commitment on the part of multiple sectors at the international, national, and community levels to document the problem, build the knowledge base, promote the design and testing of prevention programs, and promote the dissemination of lessons learned.

A science-based public health approach focused on prevention may contribute to reducing violence. Public health officials have a very important role to play in this process. Through their vision and leadership, much can be done to establish national plans and policies for violence prevention, to help facilitate the collection of data to document and respond to the problem, to build important partnerships with other sectors, and to ensure an adequate commitment of resources to prevention efforts.

The World Report on Violence and Health is made possible thanks to a large number of collaborators from around the world and financial support from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Governments of Belgium, Finland and Japan, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the Global Forum for Health Research.

For additional information on the World Report on Violence and Health CONTACT US.

Last update : July 11, 2002