Tuesday, February 3, 2009

[EQ] Addressing the socioeconomic safety divide: a policy briefing

Addressing the socioeconomic safety divide: a policy briefing

 

Lucie Laflamme, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden

Dinesh Sethi, WHO Regional Office for Europe

Stephanie Burrows, Université de Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Canada

Marie Hasselberg, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden

Francesca Racioppi, WHO Regional Office for Europe
Franklin Apfel, World Health Communication Associates, Somerset, United Kingdom

WHO Regional Office for Europe - Copenhagen, Denmark - 2009

 

Available online PDF [38p.] at: http://www.euro.who.int/document/e92197.pdf

 

“…….Injury and violence are a leading cause of death and disability in the WHO European Region. Wealth is a major determinant of health, and there is a steep social gradient of ill health due to injuries and violence. Addressing this important cause of inequity in health is a matter of social justice.

 

This policy briefing summarizes evidence on the socioeconomic safety divide from a large systematic review: Socioeconomic differences in injury risks.
A review of findings and a discussion of potential countermeasures.

 

People in low- and middle-income countries and more deprived people in high-income countries are worse off. Social and economic policies affect families’ susceptibility to injury by affecting social and physical environments. This policy briefing summarizes evidence on the socioeconomic safety divide from a large systematic review. It then provides messages for policy-makers, researchers and public health advocates and safety planners on what can be done to address this safety divide. Action for preventing injury and violence needs to be intersectoral.

 

Governments need to aim for equity across all types of government policies to address the uneven distribution of injuries. Action needs to be taken both to reduce injuries and violence universally in the population using passive interventions to make the social and physical environment inherently safer and to target disadvantaged populations. Addressing this important cause of inequity in health is a matter of social justice….”

 

CONTENTS

Introduction

Evidence on the socioeconomic safety divide

General findings

Results for specific injuries

Road traffic injuries .

Falls, burns, poisoning, drowning and mixed injuries

Self-directed violence

Interpersonal violence

Area, injury type and economic studies


Addressing the socioeconomic safety divide – messages for policy-makers

Message 1: socioeconomic inequality in violence and injuries is a great problem that can be reduced through action .

Message 2: crafting solutions requires knowing the scale and location of the problem

Message 3: develop and implement equity-oriented policies and interventions

Message 4: make sure safety-for-all strategies are in place

                      -Legislation, regulation and enforcement Community-based programmes .
                       Home safety education and home visitation programmes .

Message 5: target the population groups most at risk

      Decreasing differential susceptibility

      Decreasing the differential consequences of injuries

      Decreasing differential exposure

      Influencing social stratification


Addressing the socioeconomic safety divide – messages for researchers
.

Message 1: enhance the rigour of study design

Message 2: studies are needed in low- and middle-income countries

Message 3: more attention needs to be paid to intervention research and how it can reduce the safety divide

 

Addressing the socioeconomic safety divide – messages for public health advocates and safety planners

Message 1: frame equity in safety as a major public health problem amenable to policy action – injuries are no accident

Message 2: build intervention strategies on public health principles

Message 3: customize your advocacy and action to the needs of the environments

Message 4: give a voice to vulnerable people

Message 5: catalyse links between researchers and policy-makers

 

Conclusion .

References .

Annex 1. Methods of the review .

 

 

 

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This message from the Pan American Health Organization, PAHO/WHO, is part of an effort to disseminate
information Related to: Equity; Health inequality; Socioeconomic inequality in health; Socioeconomic
health differentials; Gender; Violence; Poverty; Health Economics; Health Legislation; Ethnicity; Ethics;
Information Technology - Virtual libraries; Research & Science issues.  [DD/ KMC Area]

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