A Data-Driven Approach to Violence Prevention
The Cardiff Model emerged in the late 1990s from groundbreaking work at Cardiff University in Wales. The model was developed when researchers noticed a significant gap: many violent incidents treated in emergency departments were never reported to police. This discovery led to the development of a revolutionary approach that combined health and law enforcement data to create a more complete picture of violence in communities.
The model’s success has been remarkable. By bringing together emergency department data with police records, communities implementing the Cardiff Model have seen dramatic results, including a 42% reduction in serious violence. The approach has also demonstrated substantial cost savings for both healthcare services and the criminal justice system.
Building on this foundation, modern violence prevention efforts have begun integrating another powerful tool: Risk Terrain Modeling (RTM). RTM is a sophisticated data analysis technique that identifies environmental features connected with crime patterns and models how these features interact to influence behavior.
When we integrate these approaches, the potential for violence prevention becomes even more powerful. RTM can analyze the incident data collected through the Cardiff Model to identify not just where violence occurs, but what environmental factors might be contributing to it. This creates unique “risk narratives” that help us understand the complete context of violent incidents.
The real power of this integration lies in its ability to guide targeted interventions. By understanding both the incidents of violence and the environmental risk factors, communities can:
- Better identify high-risk locations
- Understand the environmental context contributing to violence
- Engage the most relevant stakeholders based on both expertise and geographic proximity
- Deploy resources more effectively
In practice, this integration has shown promising results. In Milwaukee, Simsi has been supporting Cardiff Model implementation through collaboration with the Medical College of Wisconsin. Working alongside agencies including the CDC, APHA, and local service providers like the West Allis Fire Department, this integrated approach has demonstrated how data-driven decision-making can enhance community safety.
The future of violence prevention lies in such smart integrations – combining the multi-stakeholder approach of the Cardiff Model with the environmental analysis capabilities of Risk Terrain Modeling. This creates a more comprehensive, data-driven framework for creating safer communities.
For those interested in learning more about implementing these approaches, resources are available through Simsi, the National Cardiff Network, or the Global Law Enforcement and Public Health Association (GLEPHA). These organizations can provide guidance on how to leverage both methodologies to create safer, more resilient communities.