Interpersonal Violence and its Repercussions on Health at an Emergency Hospital

Abstract Violence is a multicausal, complex, and heterogeneous phenomenon as well as a public health question. When it occurs in the interpersonal sphere, it must be understood as a biopsychosocial event with serious repercussions. In Brazil, given the concern due to the current violence scenario, it was proposed the implementation of the Violence and Accidents Surveillance System, with the objective of mapping and preventing the phenomenon, using the notification act. We conducted a frequency survey and association analyses using a descriptive-transversal methodology and retrospective data collection. It was verified that physical violence was the most reported, and the most associated to hospitalizations. Psychological services reached a low occurrence index, despite the high number of referrals to mental health support. Firearms appeared as one of the main means of violence perpetration. These results, along with the verification of a lengthy procedure for the notification act, evidence the severity of the theme and the relevance of studies in this area.