Cleveland leaders heeding call to treat violence like a preventable disease

Harvard public health professor Dr. Deborah Prothrow-Smith proposed treating violence like a preventable disease in a speech in Cleveland (Source: "If we treated violence as a disease, would that help us find a cure?", The Plain Dealer, April 28, 2008).  Dr Prothrow-Smith's suggestion is finding support from elected and community leaders in Cleveland, including Mayor Frank Jackson, Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason, and Dr. Edward Barksdale Jr., the new chief pediatric surgeon at Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital.

Dr. Barksdale stated "I'd like to see the city and even the community in Northeast Ohio address the fact that we are dealing with an epidemic.  We need not to distance ourselves, but to deal with the violence from the level of even bullying."

This growing interest in prevention of violence matches interest that the Health Policy Institute of Ohio is hearing at regional forums around Ohio regarding its recent white paper on family violence.  HPIO is hosting four forums on the issue of preventing family violence during May (Toledo May 2nd, Lima May 9th, Cincinnati May 16th, and Zanesville May 23rd).  Registration remains open for any of these regional forums.