1. Epidemiology of Intentional Injuries
By: Michael Bosco

2. Intentional Injuries Intentional Injuries Numbers
The outcome of self-directed and interpersonal violence
Staggering community health problem in the US
4.6 times higher for black males than others
Numbers
50,000 deaths per year
Millions of other have nonfatal injuries per year
More prevalent in men than women (5 times)

3. Types of intentional injuries
Spectrum of violence includes:
Assaults
Rapes
Robberies
Suicides
Homicides
Maltreatment of:
Children
Elders
Intimate Partners

4. Intentional injury numbers
2005:
Residents of the US 12 years old or older reported being a victim of a violent crime in 5.2 million cases
21 out of every 1000 people in the US
Declined from 10.9 million violent crimes in 1993
2003:
Homicide and legal intervention 13th leading causer of death in the US (17,723)

5. Intentional injury numbers cont…
2004:
Death from homicide was 2nd leading causer of death in the US
15-24 year old age group
5,085 deaths during 2004
Suicide was 11th leading causer of death (31,484)
3rd leading causer of death in the age group which is considered the young adult crowd (4,316)

6. Epidemiology of intentional injuries
Interpersonal violence disproportionately affects:
Hopeless and frustrated
Jobless
Live in poverty
Low self-esteem
Alcohol, drugs and firearms are increasing used when committing violent crimes
Perpetrators are usually neglected as a kid

7. Homicide, assault and rape
Between 1991 and 2004:
Homicide rate declined from 9.8 to 5.5 per 100,000 people
Upswing before this time could be traced to handgun violence and crack cocaine distribution
Blacks 6 times more likely to be victimized than whites
Rate declined due to less violence towards victims under the age of 25

8. Homicide, assault and rape cont…
Research shows a relationship between becoming a victim of violence and level of income
Household which makes$7,500 or less 2 times more likely to become victim of a violent crime than household that makes $75,000
Every violent crime higher in males than females except:
Rape and sexual assault

9. Homicides, assaults and rape cont…
Males experience violent crime 49% more than females
Males make up three-fourths of all murder victims
Females victim of rape and sexual assault:
12 times higher than males
Only 38% of all rape cases are reported
78% of rapes and sexual assaults committed by a person who the victim is acquainted with or knows personally

10. Suicide and attempted suicide
30,000 suicides reported each year in the US
One-fifth of all injury mortality
2004:
Men per 100,000 people
Women- 4.3 per 100,000 people
Senior men are 8 times more likely to commit suicide than are senior females

11. Firearm injury and injury death
Intentional and unintentional deaths are included in firearm mortality rates
2002, second leading cause of injury related death (30,242)
Suicide- 17,108 (56.6%)
homicide- 11,829 (39%)
Legal intervention- 300 (1%)
Undetermined intent- 243 (<1%)
Only 762 (2.5%) were classified as unintentional

12. Firearm injury and injury death cont…
Highest risk for homicide and suicide involving firearms:
Teenage boys and young men (15-24 years old)
Many studies have shown that a high percentage of high school and college students have carried a working firearm to school/class
Firearm Injury Surveillance Study ( )
Best source done on nonfatal firearm injury in US

13. Violence in our society and resources for prevention
Individuals and violence:
Committed by individuals who lack basic communication and problem solving skills
Family violence and abuse
Maltreatment of children
2004, 872,000 children victim of abuse or neglect
Intimate partner violence
Maltreatment of elders
Between 1 and 2 million elders have been mistreated or abused

14. Maltreatment of children
Child maltreatment:
Failure to act by a parent, caretaker or other person defined under state law that results in physical abuse, sibling abuse, and violence toward elder family members
Child abuse:
Can be physical, emotional, verbal or sexual (intentional)
Child neglect:
Maltreatment where parent fails to provide proper care

15. Intimate partner violence
Can be defined as rape, physical assault and stalking perpetrated by current or former dates, spouses and cohabiting partners
In 2000:
1,247 women and 440 men were murdered by an intimate partner
1 in 4 women living in the US have been either assaulted or raped by an intimate partner