Safe communities: a synopsis.

The "Safe Community" is a community-based intervention model by the World Health Organization (WHO) for control and prevention of injuries and violence. The program is directed towards the prevention of all types of injuries and to all age groups, environments and situations. In this model, the community identifies its organizational needs, defines interest areas with participation by everybody, designs and implements interventions by means of inter-sector work using local, low cost solutions, and guarantees the sustainability of the programs by means of governmental commitment and alliances among different organizations. This model has demonstrated its effectiveness in different contexts, including developing countries. In Latin America, a "Safe Community" has been certified in Chile, an example to be followed for facing the problem of injuries and violence in the region.