SafeRI - Violence and Injury Prevention Program

Mission

The SafeRI-Violence and Injury Prevention Program gives communities and policy-makers the data and technical assistance they need to provide effective Injury Prevention programs and to implement policies. It also helps secure federal funds to address key safety issues. Injury prevention programs in schools provide students with the skills they need to sustain healthy relationships and to prevent violence and rape. It funds agencies to provide training to adults in school and community settings so they can identify youth who may be at risk of injuring themselves, or others, and getting them the professional help they may need to prevent suicide and other types of violence. SafeRI programs provide data and technical assistance on fall-related injuries to professionals working with older adults. Data and research information are provided to key decision makers about the effectiveness of a primary seat belt law, enforcing laws that stop Driving Under the Influence (DUI) and on other related issues that will save lives.

2010 Accomplishments and Milestones

• Trained 1,029 middle and high school students to prevent sexual violence in 11 RI schools and community-based organizations
• Reduced the percentage of high school students who indicated ever being physically forced to have sexual intercourse when they did not want to from 10% in 2007 to 7% in 2009 (Youth Risk Behavior Survey).
• Reduced the percent of African-American students who indicated ever being physically forced to have sexual intercourse when they did not want to from 10% in 2007 to 5.6% in 2009 (YRBS).
• Trained over 500 school, community based organizations and lay persons in early identification and referral of youth at risk for suicide.

Key Focus Areas

• Public health looks at illness and injury across the whole population not just individual cases.  Rhode Island injury data show a serious and widespread problem. It will take the whole community to address it.
• Injuries are predictable and preventable. Public health works toward preventing injuries before they happen by looking at predisposing factors/predictors.
• Public health brings diverse partners from other government agencies, local organizations, and community coalitions including professionals from child and adolescent health, traffic safety, emergency medical services, health care, education, law enforcement, fire prevention, social services, SAFE KIDS coalitions, and others to prevent injuries in our communities.