1. Violence in
Perspective
Views from a National
Public Health Observatory
Professor Mark A. Bellis
WHO Collaborating Centre for Violence Prevention
Public Health Observatories of England
Liverpool John Moores University

2. Centre for Public Health National
Stakeholders
Observatory
Public Health Observatories Network
Public
of England
WHO Collaborating Centre for Violence Prevention
World Health
Specialist Areas Organization
Violence Alcohol Drugs
National Stats Health Criminal
Hospital Treatment Crime
Data
Data
Populations Emergencies Prison
Deprivation and Income Deaths Sentencing
Ethnicity Births Project Evaluations
Surveys Drug/Alcohol Treatment British Crime Surveys
Health Surveys

3. Age, Sex and Hospital Admissions for Violence
700
Deprived Males
Affluent Males
600
Deprived Females
hospital admissions per 100,000 per year
500
400
300
Assault and Abuse up to 10
200
times higher in poorest
areas in early childhood and
100
parenting ages
0
0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 44 46 48 50 52 54 56 58 60 62 64 66 68 70 72 74
Age
Bellis et al, 2011

4. Hospitalisation for Sharp Object or Gunshot Wounds
Males, rate per million population, by age and deprivation
1600 Men
Deprivation quintile
Sharp object or gunshot wounds, rate per IMD1 deprived)
1 (least
1400
IMD2
2
1200
IMD3
3
IMD4
4
million population
1000 IMD5 deprived)
5 (most
IMD5
5 (Women)
800
600
400
200
0
<15 15-24 25-34 35-54 >55
Age group Draft Analysis, HES 2000-2009

5. Assault
Location
Number
1-2
3-5
6-10
Area of
residence
Number
1-4
5-9
>10
Royal
Liverpool
AED
(TIIG 2008)
20% European nightlife users involved in violence - last 12
months

6. Violence - Part of a Public Health Syndrome
9.2 per 18.1 per 27.1 per
Violent crime 1000 1000 1000
Infant deaths
Children in poverty
School achievement
Teenage pregnancy
Alcohol harm
(hospital stays)
Mental illness
Homelessness
Early death
(heart disease/stroke)
Bellis et al, Health & Place, 2011

7. Primary Prevention
Risk factors for Youth Violence Key Prevention Strategies
• Poor relationships with parents 1. Developing safe and stable
• Child maltreatment relationships
• Low academic achievement 2. Developing life and social
• Low self esteem skills
• Cultural tolerance of violence 3. Challenging cultural and social
• High community violence norms that support violence
• Easy access to weapons 4. Reducing access to lethal
• High levels of weapon ownership means
• Easy access to alcohol 5. Reducing availability and
• Heavy alcohol use harmful use of alcohol

8. Violence
Indicator
Profiles for
English
Regions
WWW.PREVENTVIOLENCE.INFO

10. Summary
• Provision of data on violence and linking
violence to other key public health issues
• Opportunity for services other than criminal
justice to operate in prevention
• Identification of social determinants in violence
prevention
• Provision of evidence based primary prevention
• Linking of violence prevention with immediate
and long term costs to health and the economy
Professor Mark A. Bellis
m.a.bellis@ljmu.ac.uk