The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #68427

Lyndee Knox, PhD, Department of Family Medicine, University of Southern California, 1975 Zonal Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90089, 323-4421329, Knox@hsc.usc.edu

While homicide and suicide are the second and third leading causes of death in youths 15–24 years of age in the United States, public health and health care professionals have been slow to identify a role in the prevention of youth violence. A multi-disciplinary task force was convened by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)-funded Southern California Center of Academic Excellence on Youth Violence Prevention and the Keck School of Medicine at the University of Southern California to define competencies for health professionals in youth violence prevention and control. Three levels of competence were identified: the generalist level, which should be obtained by all health professionals; the specialist level, which should be obtained by health professionals such as emergency medicine and primary care providers who frequently work with populations affected by violence; and a third, or scholar level, to be acquired by public health and health care professionals who wish to become experts not only in the care, but also in research and advocacy. This paper reports the recommendations of the Health Care Professionals and Youth Violence Prevention Task Force and discusses several projects currently underway to involve health professionals in the early prevention of youth violence.

Learning Objectives:

At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to:
• Explain why youth violence is a public health concern and not just a criminal justice problem.
• Identify potential roles for health care professionals in preventing youth violence and their training needs.
• Locate/contact projects underway across the US in which healthcare professionals are involved in interventions to prevent youth violence.

Keywords: Youth Violence, Medicine

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.