Epidemiology of homicide: method and demographic status of victims recorded at Sardjito General Hospital

Abstract

Aims

The study aims to find out associations between the demographic factors for a person to become a homicide victim in Indonesia and the possible form of homicide related. We hypothesise that there are association between demographic status of the homicide victim to the homicide form, and even between homicide method and incident time themselves.

Methods

By using visum et repertum of the homicide victims that were recorded in dr. Sardjito General Hospital, Yogyakarta, Indonesia in 2005-2015. The baseline characteristics are above 15 years old victims who lived in Bantul district, Sleman district, Yogyakarta city, Kulon Progo district, and Gunungkidul district with identified age, sex, homicide method, and had their incident time recorded in dr. Sardjito General Hospital. The victim’s demographic status which include age, sex, occupation, marital status, and socioeconomic, were analyzed if there is any association found to the homicide form that includes homicide method and incident time that the homicide occured. The association within the homicide form itself were also analyzed using the same method.

Results

Of the 105 homicide victims who had a Visum et Repertum made at the dr. Sardjito General Hospital, it was found that most of the homicide victims were male, 20-40 years old, work for private, married, have high socioeconomic status, were murdered by blunt force trauma with bleeding as mechanism of death, during night time and in outside settings. The result shows that homicide method is found to be significantly associated to sex as socioeconomic status only affects female, meanwhile incident time of the homicide is found to be associated to the age of the victim. The association the two variables of the homicide form were only found if the victim is male where poisoning is more likely to occur during day time and sharp object trauma is more likely to occur during night time.

Conclusion

Association between homicide method with some of the demographic status were found. As for association between homicide method and incident time, it was only found if the victim is male