Interpersonal Violence-Related Mortality in Bangladesh: Insights from a Nationwide Survey

Talab abu (1) , Md Al Amin Bhuiyan (2) , Md Shafkat Hossain (3) , Zobear Alam (4) , Shagoofa Rakhshanda (5) , Salim Mahmud Chowdhury (6) , Aminur Rahman (7) , AKM Fazlur Rahman (8) , Saidur Mashreky Rahman (9)
(1) Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb0 , Bangladesh
(2) 8801770151524 , Bangladesh
(3) Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb) and Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health, Bournemouth University, United Kingdom , Bangladesh
(4) Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb0 , Bangladesh
(5) Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb) and School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney, NSW 2052 Australia , Bangladesh
(6) Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb) , Bangladesh
(7) Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb0 , Bangladesh
(8) , Bangladesh
(9) Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb) and 4Department of Public Health, North South University, Bashundhara, Dhaka-1229, Bangladesh , Bangladesh

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18535/sshj.v9i03.1631

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Issue
Vol. 9 No. 03 (2025)
Published
2025-03-15
Keywords:
    Violence, mortality, nationwide, epidemiology/cross-sectional, Bangladesh
PDF

Abstract

Violence constitutes a critical global public health challenge, ranking as the fourth leading cause of death globally, with individuals aged 15–44 years being disproportionately affected. In Bangladesh, data on interpersonal violence mortality remains sparse. This study utilized a nationwide cross-sectional household survey conducted from March to June 2016, encompassing 70,000 households (299,216 individuals) from 16 randomly selected districts, employing multistage cluster sampling with a probability-proportional-to-size approach. Verbal autopsies were conducted to ascertain causes of death. The overall violence-related mortality rate was 4.0 per 100,000 population (95% CI: 2.3–7.0), with males exhibiting a significantly higher rate (7.3 per 100,000; 95% CI: 4.1–13.1). Mortality was highest among urban residents (5.7 per 100,000; 95% CI: 2.6–12.3) and transportation workers, with sharp-cutting objects accounting for 50% of deaths. Group riots or terrorist activities contributed to 58% of cases. Males were 11 times more likely to experience fatal violence compared to females. These findings highlight the urgent need for targeted, evidence-based interventions to address urban violence, group riots, and associated injuries in Bangladesh.

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Authors

Talab abu
Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb0
Md Al Amin Bhuiyan
8801770151524
https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7385-0864
Md Shafkat Hossain
Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb) and Centre for Midwifery & Women’s Health, Bournemouth University, United Kingdom
Zobear Alam
Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb0
Shagoofa Rakhshanda
Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb) and School of Population Health, UNSW Sydney, NSW 2052 Australia
Salim Mahmud Chowdhury
Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb)
Aminur Rahman
Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb0
AKM Fazlur Rahman
Saidur Mashreky Rahman
Centre For Injury Prevention And Research, Bangladesh (ciprb) and 4Department of Public Health, North South University, Bashundhara, Dhaka-1229, Bangladesh
Author Biography

Md Al Amin Bhuiyan, 8801770151524

I have experience and training in implementing research projects in LMICs and developing innovative research ideas in injury prevention and public health research. Currently, I am working as a project manager and associate scientist at the Centre for Injury Prevention and Research, Bangladesh (CIPRB), leading the injury prevention project named "CreCHeS", previously rolled out as "SoLiD" in collaboration with the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and funded by Bloomberg Philanthropies since May 2014 until now. Currently, I am working as a consultant for WHO to develop a healthy ageing strategy for Bangladesh. I was the principal investigator of a baseline survey on nutritional knowledge, attitude, and practice among the school-going adolescents of selected secondary schools in Bangladesh, funded by UNICEF in 2020–2021. Co-investigator of Assessing the Impact of Early Childhood Education on the School Performance of Primary School Children in Rural Bangladesh, Project and Situational Analysis of Healthcare Services for the Elderly Population (HSEP) in Bangladesh: A Nationwide Study (a grant awarded by North South University).

I began my career as a teacher at a reputable dental college for a few months before switching to a career in public health. I was a Co-PI on the preliminary evaluation of Anchal (Community Crèche): a qualitative study, as well as a Co-I on several research projects. In addition, the program's sustainability for other urban poor people. Survey on Health Situation Analysis for Implementing a "Healthy City" in Selected Bangladeshi Municipalities; Psychological Stress of health care professionals during the COVID-19 outbreak in Bangladesh I have a strong background in managing one of the world's largest data sets and other government projects under DGHS. As a self-motivated professional, I also helped in different project development, management, quality control, and data analysis.

I have provided technical support to the Philippines, Vietnam, and WHO regarding conducting national injury and drowning prevention intervention/s organized by Bloomberg Philanthropies and the World Health Organization. In both international and nationally renowned journals, I have more than 30 publications. For two years, I have been leading injury surveillance in the rural community in Bangladesh (1.2 million people). Since 2014, I have supervised over 5,000 employees (paid volunteers) and 100 different levels of employees in the 2014 program and project management.

To add more, I have been nominated for the Global Leadership Course in 2019 by the Johns Hopkins International Injury Research Unit (JH-IIRU) and the Global Road Safety Partnership (GRSP), with support from Bloomberg Philanthropies. I am also the author of an article on drowning prevention in the Oxford Research Encyclopaedia of Global Public Health. I am also a reviewer for ten internationally reputed journals. The government of Bangladesh has scaled up the Integrated Community-Based Center for Child Care, Protection, and SwimSafe Facilities Project, which I lead, for injury prevention and ECCD. I also mentor and supervise public health researchers in different public areas. The Daily Amader Shomoy awarded me a "Youth Achievement" award for contributing to public health research in the year 2022.

[1]
“Interpersonal Violence-Related Mortality in Bangladesh: Insights from a Nationwide Survey”, Soc. sci. humanities j., vol. 9, no. 03, pp. 7339–7349, Mar. 2025, doi: 10.18535/sshj.v9i03.1631.