A Regional Approach to Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Programs Through LOV

Abstract

Context: Community violence is an underaddressed public health threat. Hospital-based violence intervention programs (HVIPs) have been used to address the root causes of violence and prevent reinjury. Objective: In this article, we describe the methodology of the St Louis Region-wide HVIP, Life Outside Violence (LOV) program, and provide preliminary process outcomes. Design: Life Outside Violence mentors intervene following a violent injury to decrease risk of subsequent victimization and achieve goals unique to each participant by providing therapeutic counseling and case management services to patients and their families. Participants and Setting: Eligible patients are victims of violent injury between the ages of 8 and 24 years, who are residents of St Louis, Missouri, and present for care at a LOV partner adult or pediatric level I trauma hospital. Intervention: Enrolled participants receive program services for 6 to 12 months and complete an individual treatment plan. Main Outcome Measures: In this article, we report LOV operational methodology, as well as process metrics, including program enrollment, graduation, and qualitative data on program implementation. Results: From August 15, 2018, through April 30, 2022, 1750 LOV-eligible violently injured patients presented to a partner hospital, 349 were approached for program enrollment, and 206 consented to enroll in the program. During this pilot phase, 91 participants graduated from the LOV program and have process output data available for analysis. Conclusions: Life Outside Violence has been implemented into clinical practice as the first HVIP to influence across an entire region through partnership with multiple university and hospital systems. It is our hope that methods shared in this article will serve as a primer for organizations hoping to implement and expand HVIPs to interrupt community violence at the regional level.