The solution for violence is in our communities, not in our hospitals. Inadequate health care contributes to death in only about 10 percent of cases. A worldwide long-term study sponsored by the World Health Organization was released this month on the leading causes for sickness and death. Behavior leads the list of causes. Injuries were next, followed by mental depression, alcohol and drugs, accidents, and acts of intentional and unintentional violence.
People choose to be violent.
There are illnesses and diseases that can cause behavior changes that can lead to violence, but that is not what we are addressing here. Violence that is the result of a physical illness or disease can be managed and, in some cases, predicted so that precautions can be taken. Leading our communities to health and harmony is a significant challenge and it will take all of us to meet that challenge. The healing has to provide for needed services and also links with other resources and programs so that the environment that led to the need for medical treatment is not there when the patient, the victim, or the perpetrator returns home or returns to the community. It is an unfortunate fact that 80 percent of women in treatment for alcoholism have been physically abused.