Journal of urban health : bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine
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Rates of family violence, including intimate partner violence (IPV) and child maltreatment, remain high in the USA and contribute to substantial health and economic costs. How neighborhood environment may influence family violence remains poorly understood. We examine the association between neighborhood vacant and abandoned properties and family violence, and the role collective efficacy may play in that relationship. ⋯ Associations remained mostly stable after controlling for key covariates. Collective efficacy did not act as a mediator in the relationship between vacant and cited properties and family violence. Reducing neighborhood vacant and cited properties may be an important target for interventions focused on reducing family violence.
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To date, there have been no peer-reviewed studies in the United States estimating the impact of gun-free zone policies in alcohol-serving establishments on rates of firearm violence in and around such establishments. In this study, we utilized a cross-sectional design to estimate the impact of Texas's 51% alcohol law, which prohibits the carrying of firearms in establishments that generate over half of their revenue from alcohol sales. The analysis focused on the difference in shooting incidents in and around establishments with and without firearm carrying prohibitions in 2021 and 2022. ⋯ The protective association with gun-prohibited status diminished with increased distance from the establishments; results were not significant at 100 m. Our study findings align with research suggesting that gun-free zones can reduce firearm violence. However, future studies using quasi-experimental designs that can better support causal inference are needed to support such a conclusion, as are studies exploring the efficacy of such policies in various settings and over longer periods.
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Black women are disproportionately impacted by mental health conditions, like depression, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and substance use harms. Experiences of discrimination may cause and exacerbate these conditions, but little is known about how distinct types of discrimination (overt vs. subtle) may be related to these outcomes. The current study sought to evaluate the associations between overt and subtle discrimination, mental health, and substance misuse outcomes among Black women. ⋯ Neither overt nor subtle discrimination was significantly associated with hazardous alcohol use or daily marijuana use in adjusted models. We identified that subtle discrimination has a unique negative association with depressive symptoms, while overt discrimination is positively associated with PTSD symptoms. This information is critical for tailoring stigma reduction interventions and mental health supports for Black women.
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The place of residence is a major determinant of RMNCH outcomes, with rural areas often lagging in sub-Saharan Africa. This long-held pattern may be changing given differential progress across areas and increasing urbanization. We assessed inequalities in child mortality and RMNCH coverage across capital cities and other urban and rural areas. ⋯ Capital cities are losing their primacy in child survival and RMNCH coverage over other urban areas and rural areas, especially in Eastern Africa where under-five mortality gap between capital cities and rural areas closed almost completely by 2015. While child mortality and RMNCH coverage inequalities are closing rapidly by place of residence, slower trends in capital cities and urban areas suggest gradual erosion of capital city and urban health advantage. Monitoring child mortality and RMNCH coverage trends in urban areas, especially among the urban poor, and addressing factors of within urban inequalities are urgently needed.
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The physical expansion of the city of Ouagadougou, the capital and largest city of Burkina Faso, subsided in 2015 after the government banned land speculation that contributed to the growth and entrenchment of informal areas. The government subsequently implemented social policies such as free health care for pregnant women and children under 5 years of age. Against this background, we tested the convergence of under-5 mortality trends between formal and informal areas in the city between 2010 and 2019; data covering that period came from the Ouagadougou Health and Demographic Surveillance System (HDSS). ⋯ However, the inequality gap decreased over time due to a faster mortality decline in informal areas. This decline was explained by a rapid decline in deaths from malaria and other causes including sepsis, HIV/AIDS, measles, meningitis, and encephalitis. The pursuit of upgrading informal areas and the implementation of social policies targeting the poorest are likely to accelerate the mortality decline in Ouagadougou overall.