Violence Prevention
The Public Health Response
Dr Syed Jaffar Hussain
Regional Advisor Health Promotion/Violence and Injury
Prevention and Disability
World Health Organization, Regional Office for EMR
Violence
Inevitable or Preventable?
World Report on Violence and Health
First comprehensive review of
the problem on a global scale
Magnitude and impact
Key risk factors
Interventions and policy
responses
Recommendations
Typology of Violence
Violence
Self-directed
Interpersonal
Collective
Numbers
In the year 2000:
• 815,000 suicides
• 520,000 homicides
• 310,000 war deaths
Source: WHO database, 2000
VIOLENCE IN PERSPECTIVE
Global Estimated Deaths due to Selected Health
Problems
Malaria
1.08
Traffic injuries
Violence
Tuberculosis
1.65
1.66
HIV/AIDS
0
1.25
2.94
1
2
3
Millions of deaths per year
4
Estimated Mortality due to intentional Injury by age
(000) in EMR year 2000
5
14
7
5
11
0-4
5/14
15-29
30-44
45-59
60 and above
20
Source: World Report on Violence and Health, WHO Geneva 2002
Public Health Approach
Surveillance
What is the
Problem?
Implementation
Scaling up
effective policy
and programmes
Identify risk and
protective factors
What are the
causes?
Develop and
evaluate
interventions
What works and
for whom?
Why Public Health Approach?
 Population-based
 Emphasizes primary prevention
 Multidisciplinary and multi-sectoral in nature
 Scientific, evidence-based
Levels of prevention
Societal
Community
Relationship
Individual
Solutions
Individual-level prevention
Societal
Community
Relationship
Individual
Examples
•Pre-school enrichment
•Life skills training
•Incentives to complete schooling
•Vocational training
Solutions
Relationship-level prevention
Societal
Community
Relationship
Individual
Examples
• Parenting programmes
• Home visitation
• Family therapy
Solutions
Community-level prevention
Societal
Community
Relationship
Examples
• Reducing alcohol availability
• Economic and social empowerment
• Improve school settings
• Improve emergency medical services
Individual
Solutions
Societal-level prevention
Societal
Community
Relationship
Examples
• Reduce media violence
• Strengthen police and judicial systems
• Reduce poverty and inequality
• Educational reform
• Reduce access to lethal means
• Job creation programmes
Individual
Primary Prevention Works
Preventing firearm-related deaths through regulatory reform, Australia
rate per 100,000 population
6.00
5.00
Regulations 1
Regulations 2
Victoria
Rest of Australia
4.00
3.00
2.00
1.00
0.00
197919801981198219831984198519861987198819891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002
year of death
10 “best buys” in violence prevention:
1.
Increase safe, stable, and nurturing relationships
between children and their parents
2.
Reduce availability and misuse of alcohol
3.
Reduce access to lethal means
4.
Improve life skills and enhance opportunities for
children and youth
10 “best buys” in violence prevention:
5. Promote gender equality & empower women
6. Change cultural norms that support violence
7. Improve criminal justice systems
8. Improve social welfare systems
9. Reduce social distance between conflicting groups
10. Reduce economic inequality & concentrated poverty
Thank you !