Report examines family violence and prevention efforts in Ohio

A new report commissioned by the Anthem Foundation of Ohio with support from the Health Policy Institute of Ohio examines family violence in Ohio, providing an in-depth look at the issue and recommendations on how to improve prevention efforts. According to the White Paper on Improving Family Violence Prevention in Ohio, last year in Ohio more than

• 64,000 children were abused or neglected;
• 166,000 people were physically or sexually assaulted by an intimate partner;
• 29,000 elders were abused or neglected.

Among all Ohio residents, at least 14% of children will be maltreated at some point before age 18. In addition, nearly one in four women will be a victim of intimate partner violence in her lifetime, while at least 3 percent of elders will be abused. Each year family violence directly costs Ohio more than $1.1 billion in health care and social services. Moreover, family violence is linked to a surprisingly wide range of outcomes, from lost worker productivity and housing instability, to smoking, obesity and chronic disease.

The white paper was created by the Ohio Family Violence Prevention Project, a group of academic researchers, agency personnel and practitioners with decades of experiences in dealing with family violence. Project directors were Kenneth Steinman, assistant professor at The Ohio State University College of Public Health, and Timothy Sahr, Director of Research at the Health Policy Institute of Ohio. For more information on the project and paper, please see the related press release or download the paper and executive summary.