Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41364910›Full record

ReviewAnnual review of public health2026

Policing as a Structural Determinant of Health.

Emma Rock, Leo Beletsky, Brandon Del Pozo

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Annual review of public health, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Emma RockThe Action Lab at the Center for Health Policy and Law, School of Law, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Leo BeletskyThe Action Lab at the Center for Health Policy and Law, School of Law, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
Brandon Del PozoThe Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA.

Funding

Police Pathways to Addiction Treatment, Health, and Safety: The Police PATHS StudyR01DA064512 · NIDA · RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL · PI Evan D Anderson, Javier Cepeda · 2025 to 2026
$1.5M
Police Diversion to Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder: A Mixed Methods StudyK01DA056654 · NIDA · RHODE ISLAND HOSPITAL · PI Brandon del Pozo · 2022 to 2026
$878k
NIDA NIH HHS K01 DA056654NIDA NIH HHS R01 DA064512
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Policing in the United States functions as a structural determinant of health, with direct and collateral impacts that extend well beyond maintaining order and public safety. This review synthesizes recent evidence (from 2015 to 2025) on the relationship between policing and health. Using a rapid evidence assessment, we examine peer-reviewed and gray literature to capture physical, mental, and community-level outcomes, as well as pathways and mechanisms that link policing to health. Findings indicate that police use of force results in significant injury and deaths annually, disproportionately affecting communities of color. Beyond direct effects, policing contributes to chronic stress, trauma, and economic strain across community and occupational ecosystems. These collateral impacts compound existing structural inequities. Despite promising alternatives to police responses, evidence gaps and reliance on cross-sectional studies limit causal inference. Future research should strengthen data systems, focus on causal research, and integrate public health priorities into public safety strategies.

Indexed as

PoliceSocial Determinants of HealthHumansPublic HealthUnited Stateshealth inequitiespolicingstructural determinants of health

Identifiers

PMID41364910
PMCPMC13322339

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.