Background: A.V.E.R.T. First & A.V.E.R.T. Harm
Through decades of evidence-based observation, it has become clear that much of the harm we experience—whether to our health, well-being, or safety—stems not from sudden crises, but from the quiet accumulation of stress, unaddressed vulnerabilities, and risks that go unseen. Left unnoticed, these risks grow, often silently, until they manifest as illness, injury, or harm that could have been prevented.
This is the principle behind A.V.E.R.T. First and A.V.E.R.T. Harm. Much like a concept we call “Clean Up on Isle 7,” imagine a bottle teetering at the far end of a supermarket shelf. Everyone sees it, yet everyone assumes someone else will handle it. Each moment of hesitation increases the chance that it will fall, shatter, and create a danger—perhaps to a stranger, perhaps to a loved one, or even to ourselves.
A.V.E.R.T. Harm charges each of us with responsibility: to notice, to recognize, to respond, and when necessary, to intervene. At a minimum, it is about connecting those at risk with help before the harm unfolds. It is a proactive approach, a mindset that says: do not wait for the bottle to fall. Prevent the mess. Protect yourself, your community, and those you care about.
Just as trauma care pioneers revolutionized emergency medicine by teaching systematic, evidence-based approaches to life-threatening injuries, A.V.E.R.T. First and A.V.E.R.T. Harm offer a structured framework to recognize, assess, and respond to the full spectrum of emerging risks—physical, mental, relational, and societal. It is both a philosophy and a practice: vigilance, awareness, and timely action as the first line of defense against harm.
Through this framework, each individual becomes an empowered sentinel—capable of seeing what others might miss, of acting where others might hesitate, and of turning potential crises into opportunities for prevention, support, and healing.
