Knowledge and attitude of primary health care staff screening and not screening for domestic violence against women

Perceptions and educational needs of social and healthcare professionals in the prevention of domestic violence - A focus group study

OBJECTIVE

To explore and describe social and healthcare professionals' perceptions and educational needs in relation to domestic violence and its prevention.

METHODS

A qualitative research was conducted in three European countries. Two multidisciplinary focus group interviews were conducted (in each country) among professionals and higher education teachers in the field of social and health care. Total number of participants were 32 (Finland n=12, Greece n=12, Portugal n=8). The transcribed data were analyzed by thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Participants' perceptions of domestic violence and its prevention included: multidimensional phenomenon, consequences, and addressing concern. Domestic violence was seen as a multidimensional phenomenon, which has various consequences for several aspects of life. Professionals have difficulties addressing their concern due to lack of knowledge and tools. Solutions to prevent domestic violence that the participants shared were: education, intervention, and strategies. Education was seen as the key aspect for the prevention of domestic violence. Also, professionals' communication and situation management skills, as well as national and international strategies, were seen as valuable solutions. Educational needs for prevention of domestic violence were expressed based on content, methods, and practices, such as services system and legislation.

CONCLUSION

The findings of the current study highlight the social- and healthcare professionals' need for education about domestic violence. It is essential that these professionals receive appropriate training to effectively identify and address domestic violence. The current study provides useful information for the development of relevant training/education for this group of professionals.

Reasons for Not Seeking Professional Help by Abused Refugee Women: A Qualitative Study

This study aimed to gain insight into factors that have an impact on Syrian abused refugee women's decision for seeking professional help regarding intimate partner violence (IPV) against them. This study attempted to answer the following question; what are the reasons for not seeking professional help by victims of IPV among refugee women? The qualitative method was used with semi-structured interviews in an accessible sample of 30 abused refugee women, who were identified by cooperated local community organizations working with the refugee. Five reasons emerged from the interviews affecting seeking help behaviors for refugee women: misconceptions about IPV problem; difficulties to access and approach different care centers; lack of awareness about the negative consequences of IPV; unaware, negative expectations, negative experiences, and incorrect thoughts about IPV's services; and psychological and physical health difficulties. The authors suggested some recommendations in light of this study results. Raising awareness activities toward the negative impact of violence on women's and children well-being, improving service availability, building professional capacities to work with abused women, and providing professional services for depressed and amputee's refugee women.

Relationship of knowledge about and attitudes towards violence with recognition of violence against women among health staff in pre-hospital emergency medical services

BACKGROUND

Domestic violence, specifically, violence against women, is prevalent in all segments of society regardless of social class, ethnicity, culture or country. In other words, domestic violence is a global concern.

AIM

The study aims to investigate the relationship between the attitude and knowledge of the health staff in pre-hospital emergency medical services about violence against women and their recognition of such form of violence.

METHODS

This descriptive study was conducted on 1023 paramedics and emergency medicine technicians who work in the pre-hospital emergency health setting and are members of the Paramedic and Pre-hospital Emergency Medicine Association. The Attitudes towards Violence against Women Scale (ATVAWS) and Health Staff's Recognition of Signs of Violence against Women Scale (HPRSVAWS) were used for data collection.

RESULTS

The mean scores for the ATVAWS and HPRSVAWS were 46.68 ± 6.92 and 20.31 ± 3.23, respectively. Of the participants, 48.5% had been subjected to violence, 43.93% had been subjected to violence perpetrated by their mothers, 41.53% had been exposed to physical violence and 4.2% remain exposed to domestic violence. Participants who had been exposed and those who remain exposed to domestic violence produced high scores in ATVAWS, which indicates an improvement in the traditional approach (less opposing view) to violence. High scores in the ATVAWS for (a) those who were exposed to violence in their workplaces, (b) who had never attended to actual or suspected cases of violence against women in their professional life, (c) who had attended to seven or more cases of violence against women, (d) who were less competent in physically examining actual or suspected cases of violence and (e) who had not been trained on violence against women, which indicates an increase in the traditional approach to violence.

CONCLUSION

The study found that health staff in emergency health stations better recognised the signs of violence against women as their attitudes towards violence were less similar to the traditional approach. That is, they mostly held non-violent views. The characteristics, attitudes, perceptions and values of health professionals were considered important factors in addressing violence.

Physician experiences and barriers to addressing the social determinants of health in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: a qualitative research study

BACKGROUND

While it is increasingly recognized that social determinants influence the health of patients and populations, little is known about how doctors in the Eastern Mediterranean Region can help their patients with these issues. Our study aimed to identify common social challenges faced by patients in Eastern Mediterranean countries, to assess what doctors are already doing to address these challenges, and to identify barriers and facilitators for addressing the social causes of poor health in Eastern Mediterranean countries with shedding some light on how does this compare to a developed country like Canada.

METHODS

We conducted a qualitative research study employing qualitative descriptive methodology. A purposeful sample as well as snowballing technique were used to recruit 18 physicians who were trained in Eastern Mediterranean countries but have since moved to Canada. Recruitment continued until data saturation was reached. A content analysis was carried out after transcribing the interviews.

RESULTS

The main social challenges identified in clinical care in Eastern Mediterranean Regions include poverty, illiteracy, domestic violence, and food insecurity. Doctors attempted to help their patients by providing free medical services and free medications, establishing a donation box, and referring to social workers and support services, where available. Cultural constraints, lack of time, and unavailability of referral resources were often cited as important barriers. Our participants stated that Canada is generally better in dealing with the social challenges than their countries of origin.

CONCLUSIONS

Most study participants expressed their willingness to help patients in dealing with social challenges, and shared their experiences of tackling such issues, though there were also important barriers reported that would need to be overcome. Participants suggested that better addressing social challenges in clinical care would require educating both health care providers and patients about the importance of discussing the patient's social environment as part of the health care encounter, as well as advocating for broader policy approaches by governments to address the underlying social problems.

The effect of a peer education program on combating violence against women: A randomized controlled study

BACKGROUND

Student nurses in Turkey need to be exposed to appropriate undergraduate training if they are to acquire the required knowledge, attitudes and skills that will help them to fight the issue of violence against women (VAW).

OBJECTIVES

The aim of this research study was to assess the effect of a peer education program about combating VAW on the knowledge, attitudes and skills of nursing students.

DESIGN

The study was designed as a randomized controlled trial.

SETTINGS

The participants in the intervention group received peer education on combating VAW.

PARTICIPANTS

136 nursing students (intervention group: n=63, control group: n=73) were included in the study.

RESULTS

Participants in both the intervention and control groups were assessed at pre-training and at two months post-training. Pre-training and post-training knowledge and attitudes were significantly different in the intervention group (p<0.001). Moreover, the intervention group displayed a statistically significant difference in their ability to explain the correct interventions in a case study about VAW (p<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Our results indicate that peer education should be used as a part of undergraduate nursing education on VAW.