NCJ Number
192698
Date Published
November 1996
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This report summarizes the epidemiology of violent injury in adolescence and its physical and emotional consequences; and it outlines appropriate care for such victims who present to a hospital.
Abstract
The report notes that teens are being killed and violently injured in record numbers. Homicide has become the second leading cause of death among all adolescents and is the leading cause of death among African-American youths. It is estimated that for every death there may be as many as 100 nonfatal violent assaults that result in injury to adolescents. As adolescent murder rates have continued to increase, so have permanent physical disabilities due to assaults. Health care workers in urban trauma centers have noted that assaultive trauma is recurrent, with hospital readmission rates for subsequent assaults being as high as 44 percent. Adolescents who witness violent events are also affected cognitively, emotionally, and developmentally. Injury and death are more likely to result from altercations between people who know each other than between strangers. This report discusses psychological treatment approaches, dealing with victims' physical disabilities, emergency and trauma team care, injury identification and treatment, the assessment of patient emotional status, emergency department personnel issues, and community interface. The model protocol presented focuses on the areas of responsibility of various health care providers in addressing the needs of adolescent victims of violence. 85 references and 33 suggested readings