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There were 33 homicides per year, on average, in BC between 2013 and 2017.¹

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OVERVIEW

Violence can affect people of all ages and backgrounds. Violence includes:

• Abuse or neglect of children and youth
• Youth violence and bullying
• Cyberbullying ⁴
• Gender-based violence and sexual assault
• Intimate partner violence
• Workplace violence
• Violence in sports
• Elder abuse

There were 1,164 assaults per year, on average, resulting in hospitalization in BC from 2012/13 to 2016/17.¹

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RESEARCH

BCIRPU is working in a number of areas to understand and prevent violence-related injuries and deaths.

Traumatic head injury due to child maltreatment

Traumatic head injury due to child maltreatment (THI-CM) is detected by the signs and symptoms resulting from the violent shaking of an infant or small child, and is the leading cause of death and injury in infants under the age of one-years-old. Prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome BC, a program of BC Children’s Hospital, has delivered the Period of PURPLE Crying® Program to parents across the province since 2009.

Brain injury in survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) (2023)

Women who experience intimate partner violence (IPV) are at high risk of suffering a brain injury. Women’s shelter staff have typically lacked training with regards to IPV-caused brain injury. The CATT for Women's Support Workers eLearning module is an effective resource for increasing awareness and knowledge of IPV-caused brain injury amongst women’s shelter staff, as well as improving how they advocate for, and are mindful of, their clients with brain injury. This online training may help improve the care women with IPV-caused brain injury receive, and ultimately improve their quality of life. A pre-post survey found that the course improved knowledge among shelter staff.

The cost of firearm violent crime in British Columbia, Canada (2023)

This study aimed to quantify the total cost of violent firearm-related offenses in British Columbia in 2016 Canadian dollars over a five-year period, 2012 to 2016. The purposes of this study were to estimate the direct costs to the health care system and indirect costs to society for violent firearm injuries and deaths; and to estimate criminal justice system costs pertaining to firearm incidents. This study was published in 2023.

24% of assault-related hospitalizations were among 0 to 24-year-olds.²

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PREVENTION

Violence can be prevented. The World Health Organization lists four steps to stop violence:⁵

1. Define the problem
2. Identify causes and risk factors
3. Design and test interventions
4. Increase effective interventions

Watch for warning signs, know how to respond to someone disclosing abuse, find the tools to make a safety plan, and know how to get help.

• HelpGuide, Child Abuse and Neglect
• Canadian Red Cross, How to Respond to a Disclosure of Child Abuse or Neglect
• Gender-Based Violence, Sexual Assault, and Domestic Violence, Government of BC
• Canadian Centre for the Prevention of Elder Abuse
• Government of BC – Keeping Kids Safe
• VictimLinkBC hotline
• US Centers of Disease Control and Prevention: Help Young People Grow Up Violence-Free

Violence prevention resources specific for Indigenous peoples:

• KUU-US Crisis Services: The KUU-US Crisis line is available 24/7 to provide support to Indigenous people in BC.
• Vancouver Coastal Health First Nations ReAct (Elder Abuse Response)
• Delegated Aboriginal Agencies in BC

An estimated 230,000 women in Canada suffer severe physical violence at the hands of a partner every year.³

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RESOURCES

• Injury Insight: Overweight/Obesity and the Link to Bullying (April 2013)