title: Violence Against Children Surveys (VACS): towards a global surveillance system.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To describe the Violence Against Children Surveys (VACS). The survey is a national, household survey that systematically measures the prevalence, nature and consequences of sexual, physical and emotional violence against children.
  
  
  METHODS
  This report provides information about the history, implementation, ethical protections, utility, results, limitations, and future directions of the VACS work.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study has been implemented in 11 countries in Africa, Asia and the Caribbean, providing each of these countries with baseline data and momentum to address violence against children as a public health and human rights priority. These data are novel in each country, and VACS is well poised to contribute to an existing surveillance system or be used as the basis of a periodic surveillance system.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Without ongoing surveillance to assess prevalence and the impact of policy, prevention and response programming, violence will likely continue to be overlooked as the linchpin public health crisis that it is, globally and in individual countries.
authors.affiliation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Laura F
authors.initials: LF
authors.lastname: Chiang
authors.affiliation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Howard
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kress
authors.affiliation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Steven A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Sumner
authors.affiliation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
authors.forename: Jessie
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gleckel
authors.affiliation: Department of Social Welfare, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.
authors.forename: Philbert
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kawemama
authors.affiliation: Together for Girls, c/o UNAIDS, Washington DC, USA.
authors.forename: Rebecca N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Gordon
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000349:Africa / Q000453:epidemiology; D001208:Asia / Q000453:epidemiology; D017691:Caribbean Region / Q000453:epidemiology; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D014943:Global Health; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011159:Population Surveillance / Q000379:methods*; D015995:Prevalence; D011634:Public Health / Q000379:methods; D014754:Violence / Q000517:prevention & control* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D055815:Young Adult