Improving violence victims’ mental health
New guidance developed by Cardiff experts to improve mental health outcomes for people affected by violence has been published by the Royal College of Psychiatrists. People who are injured in or affected by physical violence, including sexual violence, are at risk of developing mental health problems such as post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, depression and substance misuse problems. But services to help these people are relatively underdeveloped. The guidance, Managing the impact of violence on mental health, including among witnesses and those affected by homicide , is co-authored by Professor Jonathan Shepherd, Violence and Society Research Group and School of Dentistry, and Professor Jonathan Bisson, School of Medicine. They and the Royal College of Psychiatrists worked in partnership with the Royal College of General Practitioners, the College of Emergency Medicine and the national charity Victim Support. Professor Jonathan Shepherd, Professor of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, said: "Having treated people injured by violence for many years, I'm convinced that the mental health problems that are inflicted are often more serious and long-lasting than their physical injuries. About 300,000 victims of violence are treated in emergency departments in England and Wales each year and about 40 per cent of these will go on to have mental health problems.
