Homicide in the province of Matanzas. From 1989 to 2016

Abstract

Summary: homicide is the most extreme form of solving social conflicts among individuals and collectives. It is not a health problem in Cuba, but because of its human, social and judicial importance, vigilance is carried out on the theme.

Objective: to describe the main epidemiological characteristics in time, space and persons, of the individuals deceased by homicide in the province of Matanzas.

Materials and Methods: a descriptive study was carried out to characterize in time, space and several personal aspects, the people deceased by homicide in the province of Matanzas during the period 1989-2016. The universe and the sample were formed by the 802 people who died by homicide during the analyzed period. Gross rates per 100 000 inhabitants were used for the analyses of the variables.
Results: the mortality rates ranged between 1.75 and 7.2 per 100 000 inhabitants. The highest quantity of deceased people were young, male, black skinned persons without stable couple. The rates were lower than in other countries, thought with a slight tendency to increase. The results were compared with other countries. It is highlighted the necessity of improving the work, beginning from the primary health care level.

Conclusions: although homicide is not a health problem because of its amount, it requires a multidiscipline and inter-sectorial work to decrease its incidence mainly in those more vulnerable groups and municipalities.