Haddon Matrix

The Haddon Matrix is the most commonly used paradigm in the injury prevention field.

Developed by William Haddon in 1970, the matrix looks at factors related to personal attributes, vector or agent attributes, and environmental attributes before, during and after an injury or death. By utilizing this framework, one can then think about evaluating the relative importance of different factors and design interventions.

A typical Haddon Matrix looks like this :

Personal Factors Vector or
Agent Factors		 Physical
Environmental Factors		 Social
Environmental Factors
Pre-event
Event
Post-event

Contents

Preventing injuries

Possible ways of preventing injury during the various phases include:[1][2][3][4][5]

Pre-event

  1. Prevent the existence of the agent.
  2. Prevent the release of the agent.
  3. Separate the agent from the host.
  4. Provide protection for the host.

Event

  1. Minimize the amount of agent present.
  2. Control the pattern of release of the agent to minimize damage.
  3. Control the interaction between the agent and host to minimize damage.
  4. Increase the resilience of the host.

Post-event

  1. Provide a rapid treatment response for host.
  2. Provide treatment and rehabilitation for the host.

References

  1. ^ Haddon W Jr. (September 1999). "The changing approach to the epidemiology, prevention, and amelioration of trauma: the transition to approaches etiologically rather than descriptively based". Inj. Prev. 5 (3): 231–5. doi:10.1136/ip.5.3.231. PMC 1730511. PMID 10518273. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=1730511. 
  2. ^ Haddon W Jr. (1980). "Advances in the epidemiology of injuries as a basis for public policy". Public Health Rep 95 (5): 411–21. PMC 1422748. PMID 7422807. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=1422748. 
  3. ^ Haddon W Jr. (1974). "Editorial: Strategy in preventive medicine: passive vs. active approaches to reducing human wastage". Journal of Trauma 14 (4): 353–4. doi:10.1097/00005373-197404000-00022. PMID 4819627. 
  4. ^ Baker SP, Haddon W Jr. (Fall 1974). "Reducing injuries and their results: the scientific approach". Milbank Mem Fund Q Health Soc 52 (4): 377–89. doi:10.2307/3349509. JSTOR 3349509. PMID 4498200. 
  5. ^ Haddon W Jr. (December 1970). "On the escape of tigers: an ecologic note". Am J Public Health Nations Health 60 (12): 2229–34. doi:10.2105/AJPH.60.12.2229-b. PMC 1349282. PMID 5530409. http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?tool=pmcentrez&artid=1349282.