Injury from assault in New Zealand: an increasing public health problem

Injury purposely inflicted by other persons is a significant public health problem accounting for approximately 4 per cent of all injury hospitalisations in New Zealand. National injury morbidity data for the years 1979-1988 were examined. These data were used to identify the characteristics of victims of assault who were hospitalised, the nature of the injuries they sustained, and the circumstances in which the injuries were inflicted. The incidence of hospitalisations in 1988 was 73.7 per 100,000 persons per year. A significant increase in the rate of hospitalisations over the decade 1979-1988 was identified. The rates for males were higher than those for females, with males 20-24 years of age most at risk. Maori had higher rates than non-Maori. Fights or brawls were the leading cause of hospitalisation. The most common place of occurrence was private homes, followed by streets and highways, and licensed premises. The findings with regard to age, sex, employment status and use of weapons were consistent with earlier studies. A higher proportion of incidents occurring in the home was attributed to differences in selection of cases between studies. An indication of underreporting by women was attributed to concealment of intentionality, possible owing to fear of reprisal. Standard hospital reporting procedures were proposed as a means of improving identification.