PREVENTION

Center for Violence and Injury Control (CVIC)

The Center for Violence and Injury Control (CVIC) is a statewide, interdisciplinary program organized within Allegheny General Hospital. CVIC's mission is to conserve health in communities by reducing the frequency and consequences of violence and unintentional injuries.

We believe that our center reflects the emergence of a new paradigm for injury control in the United States. Deeply rooted in the core disciplines of epidemiology and biomechanics, injury control research in the areas of prevention, acute care and rehabilitation has proliferated during the last several decades. In the 1990's, the public health model for injury control emerged as a unifying and prototypical approach to addressing the problem of injury. This model includes surveillance and data collection, risk factor identification, the development and evaluation of interventions, and the implementation of interventions with proven effectiveness.

The philosophy of our program is that injury control centers of excellence should lead the effort to apply this public health model in the regions they serve. We believe that injury control centers should conduct local and regional injury surveillance; spearhead interdisciplinary injury control research; provide advanced training in injury control; and provide the leadership needed to confront this public health problem. At CVIC, our goal is to apply the science of injury control in order to create safe communities throughout Pennsylvania.

CVIC studies include:

Multi-site Evaluation of Batterer Intervention Systems
Principal Investigator - Edward Gondolf, EdD (Indiana University of Pennsylvania)
Co-investigator - Jeffrey Coben, M.D.
This project, now in its sixth year, is the largest study of batterer treatment programs ever conducted. The study involves comparing the impact and outcomes of four different batterer treatment programs across the country, and analyzing outcomes by program site differences as well as participant differences. An extensive database of over 800 batterers and their female partners has been accumulated. Opportunities for secondary analysis of the database and subsequent manuscript development are available.

Evaluation of the Alle-Kiski Area Hope Center's Prevention Education Program
Principal Investigator - Jeffrey Coben, M.D.
This is an ongoing evaluation of a violence prevention curriculum being implemented in selected middle schools in the Alle-Kiski Valley region, just north of the City of Pittsburgh.

Evaluation of the School District of Pittsburgh's Safe Schools/Healthy Students Initiative
Principal Investigator - Jeffrey Coben, M.D.
In September of 1999, the School District of Pittsburgh began implementation of a three year, multi-faceted program designed to provide students, schools, and communities with enhanced comprehensive educational, mental health, social service, law enforcement, and, as appropriate, juvenile justice system services that promote healthy childhood development and prevent violence and alcohol and other drug abuse. Dr. Coben is the local evaluator of this program. A variety of research and evaluation activities are planned over the next three years.

Allegheny County Injury Surveillance System
Principal Investigator - Jeffrey Coben, M.D.
Co-investigator - Deborah Friedman, MPH
This project assembles, links, and analyzes county-wide information on the victims, perpetrators, circumstances, and weapons involved in fatal and non-fatal firearm-related injuries throughout Allegheny County. Data are obtained from a variety of local sources. The project is one of 10 sites participating in the development of a national firearm-related injury database.

Evaluation of Pennsylvania's Graduated Drivers License System
Principal Investigator - Jeffrey Coben, M.D.
Co-Principal Investigator - Mary Pat McKay, M.D.
Funded for three years (2000-2002) by PennDOT to comprehensively evaluate the effect of new legislation on young driver crashes. Includes database creation and analysis of licensing and crash data as well as focus groups and a written survey to evaluate the attitudes toward the changes. Opportunities are available for participation in this project just as it gets underway with database creation. Many potential offshoots using the database and/or the survey opportunity are available.

Evaluation of the Pittsburgh Bicycle Helmet Promotion Coalition
Co-Investigators - Mary Pat McKay, M.D., Deborah Friedman, MPH, Jeffrey Coben, M.D.
The AGH Center for Violence and Injury Control (CVIC) is providing leadership for a large coalition effort designed to improve the use of bicycle helmets among children living in the Pittsburgh area. Coordinated through CVIC, the Coalition has extramural funding which supports a full time coordinator, primary community-based interventions and evaluation of the results of the programs. Opportunities exist for participation in every level from grant applications and fundraising activities, community based events, and the evaluation process. Currently there are three research papers in preparation.

Evaluation of the Alle-Kiski Area Hope Center Medical Advocacy Project
Principal Investigator - Jeffrey Coben, M.D.
The goal of this project is to improve the medical response provided to victims of domestic violence who are seen in the health care setting. The project is a collaboration between the Alle-Kiski Area HOPE Center (a women's shelter and advocacy agency), Citizens General Hospital, and Allegheny Valley Hospital. Dr. Coben is conducting the evaluation of this project and also providing physician training on domestic violence as a part of the ongoing intervention.

Articles:

States Identify Children Exposed to Violence

Violence Begets Behavioral Problems in Kids

Links:

Pittsburgh Police Tip Form

National Youth Violence Prevention Center