WASHINGTON - The Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) announces the publication of a Health Education & Behavior theme section devoted to the latest research on domestic violence prevention and the effectiveness of community coalitions in 19 states to prevent and reduce intimate partner violence. The theme section "DELTA PREP" (Domestic Violence Prevention Enhancement and Leadership Through Alliances and Preparing and Raising Expectations for Prevention) presents findings from a multi-site project supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to build infrastructure to address intimate partner violence as a public health issue.
Intimate partner violence affects 1 in 5 women and 1 in 7 men over the course of their lifetime and can leave people vulnerable to a range of health problems including mental health issues, sexually transmitted infections, chronic pain, cardiovascular disease and tobacco and alcohol abuse. Historically, domestic violence coalitions have focused on supporting those experiencing violence. However, given the costly mental, physical and social health impacts on those exposed, it is critical to address prevention from a community perspective.
"Because of its prevalence and impact on health, intimate partner violence must be considered an urgent public health problem deserving the same level of attention and investment we give to problems of similar magnitude and impact like cancer and HIV" said Jim Mercy, Ph.D., Director, CDC Injury Center's Division of Violence Prevention. "The results of DELTA PREP provide hope that actions to prevent intimate partner violence can be disseminated and implemented through domestic violence coalitions with the urgency that is due this problem."
Three of the articles in the theme section delve into how the coalitions created and implemented action plans to address domestic violence, specific challenges and the powerful role of partnerships and stakeholders in carrying out action planning. The fourth article presents an innovative, rapid-feedback process that the CDC team implemented to promote quality improvement throughout the project.
John Allegrante, Editor-in-Chief of Health Education & Behavior, said the DELTA PREP theme section constituted a first for the journal and that it would contribute "an important missing piece to the literature and science base underlying promising approaches to mitigate the nationwide problem of domestic violence."
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DELTA PREP is a project of the CDC National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Division of Violence Prevention. Funding for the theme section was provided by the CDC Foundation through a grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
All articles in the HE&B supplemental issue are provided through open access at http://heb.sagepub.com/content/42/4?etoc. Information on related podcasts and webinars will be available at http://www.sophe.org. Follow SOPHE and Health Education & Behavior on Twitter: @SOPHEtweets, #HEB #SOPHEJOURNALS
About Health Education & Behavior (HE&B)
Health Education & Behavior explores social and behavioral change as they affect health status and quality of life. It also examines the processes of planning, implementing, managing, and assessing health education and social-behavioral interventions. The journal provides empirical research, case studies, program evaluations, literature reviews, and discussions of theories of health behavior and health status, as well as strategies to improve social and behavioral health. For more information, visit http://hpp.sagepub.com/
About Society for Public Health Education
The Society for Public Health Education (SOPHE) is a non-profit professional organization founded in 1950 to provide global leadership to the profession of health education and health promotion and to promote the health of society. SOPHE's 4,000 international and chapter members work in various public and private organizations to advance health education theory and research, develop disease prevention and health promotion programs, and promote public policies conducive to health. For more information, see http://www.sophe.org
About CDC's Division of Violence Prevention
The Division of Violence Prevention (DVP) is one of three divisions within the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control (NCIPC). DVP is committed to stopping violence before it begins (i.e., primary prevention). The division's work involves monitoring violence-related injuries; conducting research on the factors that put people at risk or protect them from violence; creating and evaluating the effectiveness of violence prevention programs; helping state and local partners plan, implement, and evaluate prevention programs; and conducting research on the effective adoption and dissemination of prevention strategies. For more information, see http://www.cdc.gov/violenceprevention.
About CDC Foundation
The CDC Foundation connects the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) with private-sector organizations and individuals to build public health programs that make our world healthier and safer. Since 1995, the CDC Foundation has provided $450 million to support CDC's work, launched more than 750 programs around the world and built a network of individuals and organizations committed to supporting CDC and public health. http://www.cdcfoundation.org/
About Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provides grants for projects in the United States and U.S. territories that advance our mission to improve the health and health care of all Americans. http://www.rwjf.org/en.html
Media Contact: Ramona Jackson | (202) 408-9804 |rjackson@sophe.org
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Health Education & Behavior