Battered wives. Family violence seen in general practice

Domestic violence victims in a hospital emergency department

OBJECTIVE

To determine the prevalence and predictors of domestic violence victims among attenders at the emergency department at Royal Brisbane Hospital in 1991.

DESIGN

Cross-sectional study in which randomly selected nursing shifts were used to screen attenders.

RESULTS

Of all attenders at the emergency department, 14.1% disclosed a history of domestic violence. Women were more likely than men to disclose domestic violence ("raw" relative risk, 2.31; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.83-2.91; relative risk adjusted for age and history of child abuse, 4.50; 95% CI, 3.02-6.71). The greatest risks for being an adult victim of domestic violence were being female and having experienced abuse as a child. Most of those who had experienced domestic violence within the last 24 hours (1.1% of attenders) came to the department after-hours when social work staff were unavailable for referral.

CONCLUSIONS

The prevalence and risk factors have implications for the training of doctors and nurses in domestic violence problems and for the provision of adequate resources to deal with the psychosocial aspects of domestic violence.

Giving up: shelter experiences of battered women

Within the last decade intrafamilial violence has been identified as a major health and social problem. Women in particular are at high risk for battering and often seek refuge in shelters. Empirical evidence is required regarding the experiences of battered women who use these shelters. Therefore, we collected qualitative data from interviews with seven battered women and by observation in ten group counseling sessions at a shelter in the Southeast. Using grounded theory methodology, the core concept that emerged was "giving up." Supporting concepts were helplessness and fear of the unknown. The participants found it easier to give up and return to the abusive relationship than to seek alternatives.

Battered women: how can nurses help?

Research findings about the experience of 1,000 battered wives are presented in this paper. A total of 146 once-battered wives volunteered to be interviewed about their backgrounds, their victimization, and their use of personal strategies, informal help-sources, and formal help-sources to end the violence in their lives. As part of an article in Woman's Day magazine about this research, women who were currently or who had been previously battered were invited to respond to a questionnaire. The first 854 questionnaires returned in usable form were added to the interviews to create a 1,000-case national data base. An important finding of the study is that formal help-sources differ significantly in their effectiveness in providing service to battered women. The women in this study rated health care personnel as less effective than any other formal source of help. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of the research findings for nursing practice as they relate to the need for: a) awareness by the nurse of her or his own attitudes about battered women, b) understanding of the dynamics of battering, c) knowledge and skills for assessment of battering, and d) effective strategies for nursing intervention.

Family violence: aids to recognition

Family violence, heretofore a sociopolitical phenomenon, is rapidly becoming a medical problem. Theoretically, the family physician is in the best position to diagnose and manage the casualties of family violence. However, clinical recognition of victims of violence is difficult because of reluctance by both patient and physician to address the problem directly. Wives, children, parents, and husbands are all subject to family violence. Several distinguishing characteristics among the victimized groups are shared by more than one group. A high index of suspicion facilitates victim identification, but there is no substitute for direct inquiry about family violence.