Partners in prevention: the role of health systems in the prevention of youth violence in post-conflict Northern Ireland

Walsh, Colm; Smyth, Ryan

doi:10.1057/s41300-022-00159-9

Cited by 2 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Both organizations would benefit from an understanding of the level of violence and the demand created by different areas and locales (e.g., Buil‐Gil et al, 2022; Walsh & Smyth, 2022). However, the police are unlikely to obtain access to subject‐level information from the ambulance services due to patient confidentiality concerns, so alternative means of sharing data ought to be explored.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Overcoming unreported violence using place‐based ambulance data: The case for mapping hotspots based on health data for crime prevention initiatives

Simmonds,

Ariel,

Harinam

2023

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A key concern in crime analysis is the “hidden crime” problem. Crime events unaccounted for in police records limit the external validity of official statistics and, more importantly, hinder the ability of the police to manage crime and utilize their resources effectively. The problem is exacerbated in proactive initiatives aimed at curbing violence through hotspot policing, where inaccuracies and imprecision, or, worse, no data at all, diminish prevention efforts. Previous studies have sought to overcome the data problem by juxtaposing police records with ambulance data on assault callouts and have found profound disparities. Specifically, researchers matched “crime hotspots” with “ambulance hotspots” (rather than individual events) because patient confidentiality considerations have prevented health professionals from sharing subject‐level data with the police. However, health services can safely share spatial data on wider areas that do not disclose personal information. We build on this line of inquiry by analyzing data from the Thames Valley, United Kingdom, and observing spatial hotspots of different sizes. The results demonstrate that while the police and ambulance services attend to the same communities and similar types of facilities, the police are “blinded” to the location of nearly 8 out of 10 assaults. The incongruency is shown even with severe assaults, but to a lesser extent. We then simulate the reduction in injuries if the police had access to health data at different spatial levels and show that even under the most conservative set of assumptions, such an approach can prevent between 113 and 116 violent injuries each year that might otherwise require hospitalization.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Overcoming unreported violence using place‐based ambulance data: The case for mapping hotspots based on health data for crime prevention initiatives

Simmonds,

Ariel,

Harinam

2023

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“…Interpersonal violence is a global concern. There are an estimated 500,000 people murdered each year and this is increasing at an annual rate of 2% (Mitis & Sethi, 2015 ), thus contributing to enduring concerns regarding its frequency, intensity and impact (Walsh, 2021 ; Walsh & Smyth, 2022 ; YEF, 2022 ). Youth violence has received particular policy attention over recent years (YEF, 2022 ), and whilst temporary reductions in youth violence were observed during the Covid-19 pandemic (Ellis et al, 2021 ; Reid & Baglivio, 2022 ), incidences in Northern Ireland appear to have returned to, and even exceeded, pre-pandemic levels (PSNI, 2022 )—an observation that is consistent with wider empirical findings (Ellis et al, 2021 ; Reid & Baglivio, 2022 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Disrupting the cycle of youth violence: The role of social support for youth in a Northern Irish Youth Work Programme

Walsh

2023

Journ Child Adol Trauma

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Youth violence is a significant concern and previous research has found that violence is both trauma inducing and violence inducing. Meta-analyses have demonstrated that peri-trauma contextual factors such as the presence or absence of social supports following the onset of trauma may be predictive of the onset and duration of psychological stress. The aim of this study is to build upon the existing research evidence to clarify the links between social support, psychological stress and physical violence among a cross-section of youth living in high-violence areas of Northern Ireland. Participants were a sample of 10–25-year-olds (N = 635) who participated in a targeted youth work programme in Northern Ireland. This study conducted a mediation analysis, entering social support as the independent variable, psychological distress as the mediator and self-reported violence as the outcome variable. Violent victimisation was entered as a covariate in the analysis. After controlling for violent victimisation, social support operates through psychological stress to influence the risk of physical violence. Social support may contribute to reductions in psychological stress and thus buffer against the risks of living in areas of elevated community violence. Specialist youth work approaches may provide an opportunity to reduce psychological stress and thus help to mitigate the risk of further violence. Combined, these insights provide opportunities for harm reduction and prevention. At the same time, these findings advance our understanding of the distinct mechanisms of change involved in youth work-led violence prevention efforts.

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Partners in prevention: the role of health systems in the prevention of youth violence in post-conflict Northern Ireland

Cited by 2 publications

References 38 publications

Overcoming unreported violence using place‐based ambulance data: The case for mapping hotspots based on health data for crime prevention initiatives

Overcoming unreported violence using place‐based ambulance data: The case for mapping hotspots based on health data for crime prevention initiatives

Disrupting the cycle of youth violence: The role of social support for youth in a Northern Irish Youth Work Programme

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