Johns Hopkins School of Nursing (JHSON) Professor Jacquelyn Campbell, PhD, RN, FAAN, has been named an American Academy of Nursing Edge Runner for her program, Danger Assessment: An Instrument to Help Abused Women Assess Their Risk of Homicide. The honor recognizes nurse-designed models of care and interventions that improve health care quality, cost, and consumer satisfaction.

“This is an extraordinary honor and another opportunity to shed light on domestic violence,” says Campbell. “I am grateful for the Academy’s recognition and for the commitment of so many colleagues and organizations that have prioritized research and funding for this distressing public health problem.”

Across the United States, one in three women has been affected by domestic violence, and when women are murdered, it is most often by a husband, boyfriend, ex-boyfriend, or partner. Through the Danger Assessment, women are provided a tool to help determine the likelihood of being killed by an intimate partner.

Users are guided through 20 questions to prompt awareness of risk factors like death threats and partner’s access to a gun. Based on the level of danger, the Danger Assessment helps with safety planning measures and provides resources for abused women to learn about shelters, family justice centers, and medical advocacy. The tool also provides a calendar to help identify frequency of abuse and when injuries occurred, which can serve as evidence for possible court proceedings.

Campbell developed the Danger Assessment in 1986 by using her research, clinical knowledge, and expertise as a nurse combined with the input of law enforcement and domestic violence survivors. It is free to the public in a variety of languages and available to health care professionals who want to be certified to use the tool within their own practices and organizations. It has served as the framework for a number of other interventions including the Lethality Assessment adopted by police forces across the U.S., and the MyPlan relationship-safety app developed by JHSON Professor Nancy Glass, PhD, MPH, RN, FAAN.

“Dr. Campbell has dedicated her nursing career to caring for victims of domestic violence and using her many years of research, study, and experience to help and keep women and families safe and healthy,” says JHSON Dean Patricia Davidson, PhD, MEd, RN, FAAN. “This is a marvelous recognition of her passion, collaboration, and knowledge of nursing and community health.”

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Located in Baltimore, the Johns Hopkins School of Nursing is a globally-recognized leader in nursing education, research and practice and ranks No. 1 nationally among graduate schools of nursing and No. 2 for DNP programs in the U.S. News & World Report 2019 rankings. In addition, the school is ranked by QS World University as the No. 3 nursing school in the world and is No.1 by College Choice for its master’s program. For more information, visit www.nursing.jhu.edu.