Knowledge and perceptions of domestic violence services among women in Ghana

Support services are important to the mental and physical well-being of survivors of intimate partner violence. However, researchers and service providers note that survivors seldom report violence to formal domestic violence services in Ghana. Despite calls from service providers for Ghanaians to report domestic violence, few studies have focused on women’s knowledge and perceptions of formal domestic violence services in Ghana and how these perceptions influence their help-seeking behaviour. This thesis presents qualitative findings on Ghanaian women's knowledge and perceptions of formal domestic violence services. Also, challenges to service delivery are explored. Results revealed that awareness among respondents of available services was low. Additionally, most respondents had negative perceptions of these formal services. This study demonstrates that more educational campaigns need to be carried out to raise awareness among Ghanaians on domestic violence and the formal interventions available in the country. Additionally, service providers and policy makers must formulate programmes and policies that are better suited to the uniqueness of the Ghanaian situation.

Domestic Violence Perpetrators - Evidence informed responses

Domestic violence is a serious, widespread public, social and health problem that affects the lives of many women, children and men. There is also evidence to suggest it has one of the highest rates of recidivism. This comprehensive book provides an overview of what the research tells us about the perpetrators of domestic violence and what works, and what doesn’t, in promoting positive change.

Collecting together the most up-to-date evidence from the international literature and bringing psychological, sociological, gendered and socio-political theoretical perspectives to bear on the issue, the book explores:
- what domestic violence is, why it happens and how it can be measured
- who the perpetrators of domestic violence are, including discussion of non-stereotypical patterns such as male victims, female perpetrators, couples where the abuse is mutual, and couples with abusive relationships who want the abuse to end but the relationship to be sustained
- strategies for engaging perpetrators in interventions and for promoting behaviour change
- evidence-informed interventions, programmes and policies for working with perpetrators
- where robust evidence is lacking and more research needs to be undertaken.

Let your voice be heard : a guide to services available to empower victims of domestic violence : Lowcountry

This brochure gives directions on how to leave an abusive relationship. It also has a list of community resources and hotlines (by county) available to victims of domestic violence in the lowcountry region of South Carolina.

Let your voice be heard : a guide to services available to empower victims of domestic violence : Mid-Carolina

This brochure gives directions on how to leave an abusive relationship. It also has a list of community resources and hotlines (by county) available to victims of domestic violence in the midlands region of South Carolina.

Let your voice be heard : a guide to services available to empower victims of domestic violence : Pee Dee

This brochure gives directions on how to leave an abusive relationship. It also has a list of community resources and hotlines (by county) available to victims of domestic violence in the Pee Dee Region of South Carolina.

Let your voice be heard : a guide to services available to empower victims of domestic violence : Upstate

This brochure gives directions on how to leave an abusive relationship. It also has a list of community resources and hotlines (by county) available to victims of domestic violence in the upstate region of South Carolina.

The Rule of Thumb: A Five Year Overview of Domestic Violence in South Carolina

This Powerpoint presentation gives a five year statistical overview of domestic violence in South Carolina. It covers the years 2004 through 2008.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE IN PERSPECTIVE OF WOMEN WHO LIVED IT

Introduction: Knowing the experience of abuse, contextual determinants that led to the rupture of the situation and attempts to build a more harmonious future, it is essential to work sensitivities and better understand victims of domestic violence. Objectives: To understand the suffering of women victims of violence. Methods: This is an intentional sample of 21 women who were at shelter home or in the community. The data were collected by in- Documento descargado de http://www.elsevier.es el 13-10-2016 3rd World Congress of Health Research 21 terviews, guided by a script organized into four themes. The interviews were conducted with audio record, the permission of the participants were fully passed the text and analyzed as two different corpuses, depending on the context in which they occurred. The analysis was conducted using the ALCESTE computer program. The study obtained a favorable opinion of the Committee on Health and Welfare of the University of Évora. Results: From the irst sample analysis emerged ive classes. The association of the words gave the meaning of each class that we have appointed as Class 1 - Precipitating Events; Class 2 - Experience of abuse; Class 3 - Two feet in the present and looking into the future; Class 4 - The present and learning from the experience of abuse; and Class 5 - Violence in general. From the analysis of the sample in the community four classes emerged that we have appointed as Class 1 - Violence in general; Class 2 - Precipitating Events; Class 3 - abuse of experience; and class 4 - Support in the process. Conclusions: Women who are at shelter home have this experience of violence and its entire context a lot are very focused on their experiences and the future is distant and unclear. Women in the community have a more comprehensive view of the phenomenon of violence as a whole, they can decentralize to their personal experiences and recognize the importance of support in the future construction process.

Alcoholic women and men: a comparative study of social and familial aspects and outcome

Objetivos: A proporção de ocorrência de alcoolismo em homens e mulheres tem uma variação de 14:1 até 2:1, mostrando a necessidade de estudos específicos para a população feminina. O objetivo deste estudo foi analisar o perfil e a evolução de alcoolistas, segundo gênero e gravidade da dependência. Métodos: Realizou-se um estudo longitudinal retrospectivo de 114 homens e 57 mulheres alcoolistas (CID-10), inscritos no ambulatório da Faculdade de Medicina de Botucatu, no período de 1990-1994 e avaliados até julho de 1997. Utilizou-se um questionário semi-estruturado, e, para avaliação da gravidade do alcoolismo, o Short Alcohol Dependence Data. Resultados/Conclusões: Os principais resultados mostraram que a estrutura familiar estava comprometida com: relacionamento difícil para 55,6% das mulheres e 65,7% dos homens; violência familiar em 74,1% das mulheres e 61,1% dos homens. As mulheres iniciaram a ingestão mais tarde que os homens (p=0,01), em geral com seus cônjuges (p=0,00). Não houve diferença de evolução no tratamento entre os gêneros. Os principais fatores associados à melhor resposta ao tratamento, independentemente do sexo, foram: nível de gravidade de dependência do álcool (dependentes leves e moderados apresentaram 5,59 vezes mais chances de melhorar do que os dependentes graves); ser praticante de alguma religião (2,3 vezes mais chances de melhora do que os pacientes que não eram praticantes); e tempo de seguimento no programa, negativamente correlacionado a chances de melhora (0,68 vezes menos chances de melhora que aqueles que permaneceram por tempo menor em tratamento).

Violence against women: a study of the reports to police in the city of Itapevi, Sao Paulo, Brazil

Background: violence against women is a serious problem caused by the social construction of feminineness and masculineness that results in the domination of women by men. Public policies on gender have recently been developed in order to confront the problem. But what exactly are the problems faced by women? Purposes: to survey and analyse cases of violence against women reported to the police, as recorded at the Police Stations for Women`s Defence (PSWDs), and to reconstruct the procedures that women must go through in order to denounce their aggressors. Methodology: this quantitative, exploratory and descriptive study was undertaken during 2006-2007 in the city of Itapevi, Sao Paulo metropolitan region, Brazil. As there is no PSWD data were collected from police reports from PSWDs of neighbouring cities. Findings: malicious physical injury (49%) and threats (42%) were the most commonly reported types of violence. The victims were aged between 20 and 49 years (93%). Almost all of the aggressors (97%) were men and most had an intimate relationship with their victim. The use of alcoholic beverages was linked to approximately 25% of the cases. Conclusion: women who are victims of domestic violence in Itapevi report that going through PSWDs of neighbouring cities is a difficult, isolated, long and expensive process that often, provides no institutional protection. Implications for practice: there is an urgent requirement for judicial-assistance and support close to home in order to provide a quality service and follow-up for these women and their aggressors; to provide training for the professionals called to attend them at police stations; and for a caring attitude from health-care professionals.,0 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Violence between intimate partners and alcohol use: prevalence and associated factors

Objective. To estimate physical violence between intimate partners and to examine the association between violence and sociodemographic variables, use of alcohol, and other related factors. Method. This epidemiologic survey included a stratified probabilistic sample representative of the population from the city of Sao Paulo in economic and educational terms. The Gender, Alcohol and Culture: An International Study (GENACIS) questionnaire was employed. The sampling unit was the home, where all individuals older than 18 years were candidates for interview. The final sample included 1 631 people. Statistical analysis employed the Rao Scott test and logistic regression. Results. The response rate was 74.5%. Most participants were female (58.8%), younger than 40 years of age (52%), or had 5 to 12 years of schooling. Of the overall group, 5.4% reported having been victims of physical violence by an intimate partner and 5.4% declared having been aggressors of intimate partners in the past 2 years. Most men declared that none of those involved had ingested alcohol at the moment of aggression. Most women reported that nobody or only the man had drunk. Being a victim or an aggressor was associated with younger age and having a heavy-drinking partner. Women suffered more serious aggression, requiring medical care, and expressed more anger and disgust at aggression than men. Conclusions. The results underscore the importance of the association between alcohol use and risk of aggression between intimate partners, and may contribute to the design of public policies aimed to control this situation.

Prevalence of victims of violence admitted to an emergency department.

OBJECTIVE: To collect data on the consultation frequency and demographic profile of victims of violence attending an emergency department (ED) in Switzerland. METHODS: We undertook screening of all admitted adult patients (>16 years) in the ED of the CHUV, Lausanne, Switzerland, over a 1 month period, using a modified version of the Partner Violence Screen questionnaire. Exclusionary criteria were: life threatening injury (National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics score > or =4), or inability to understand or speak French, to give oral informed consent, or to be questioned without a family member or accompanying person being present. Data were collected on history of physical and/or psychological violence during the previous 12 months, the type of violence experienced by the patient, and if violence was the reason for the current consultation. Sociodemographic data were obtained from the registration documents. RESULTS: The final sample consisted of 1602 patients (participation rate of 77.2%), with a refusal rate of 1.1%. Violence during the past 12 months was reported by 11.4% of patients. Of the total sample, 25% stated that violence was the reason for the current consultation; of these, 95% of patients were confirmed as victims of violence by the ED physicians. Patients reporting violence were more likely to be young and separated from their partner. Men were more likely to be victims of public violence and women more commonly victims of domestic violence. CONCLUSIONS: Based on this monthly prevalence rate, we estimate that over 3000 adults affected by violence consult our ED per annum. This underlines the importance of the problem and the need to address it. Health services organisations should establish measures to improve quality of care for victims. Guidelines and educational programmes for nurses and physicians should be developed in order to enhance providers' skills and basic knowledge of all types of violence, how to recognise and interact appropriately with victims, and where to refer these patients for follow up care in their local networks.

Prevalence of victims of violence admitted to an emergency department.

OBJECTIVE: To collect data on the consultation frequency and demographic profile of victims of violence attending an emergency department (ED) in Switzerland. METHODS: We undertook screening of all admitted adult patients (>16 years) in the ED of the CHUV, Lausanne, Switzerland, over a 1 month period, using a modified version of the Partner Violence Screen questionnaire. Exclusionary criteria were: life threatening injury (National Advisory Committee on Aeronautics score > or =4), or inability to understand or speak French, to give oral informed consent, or to be questioned without a family member or accompanying person being present. Data were collected on history of physical and/or psychological violence during the previous 12 months, the type of violence experienced by the patient, and if violence was the reason for the current consultation. Sociodemographic data were obtained from the registration documents. RESULTS: The final sample consisted of 1602 patients (participation rate of 77.2%), with a refusal rate of 1.1%. Violence during the past 12 months was reported by 11.4% of patients. Of the total sample, 25% stated that violence was the reason for the current consultation; of these, 95% of patients were confirmed as victims of violence by the ED physicians. Patients reporting violence were more likely to be young and separated from their partner. Men were more likely to be victims of public violence and women more commonly victims of domestic violence. CONCLUSIONS: Based on this monthly prevalence rate, we estimate that over 3000 adults affected by violence consult our ED per annum. This underlines the importance of the problem and the need to address it. Health services organisations should establish measures to improve quality of care for victims. Guidelines and educational programmes for nurses and physicians should be developed in order to enhance providers' skills and basic knowledge of all types of violence, how to recognise and interact appropriately with victims, and where to refer these patients for follow up care in their local networks.

Construction and validation of an instrument that breaks the silence: the impact of domestic and/or sexual violence on women's health, as shown during climacterium

Objective: The aim of this study was to construct and to validate a measure of the consequences of domestic violence on women's health during climacterium. Methods: A questionnaire was administered at the Outpatient Climacterium Clinic to 124 women aged 40 to 65 years who were the victims of domestic and/or sexual violence (experimental group). They were divided into three groups: (1) those who were victims of violence exclusively during childhood/adolescence, (2) those who were victims of violence exclusively during adulthood, and (3) those who were victims of violence throughout their lives. The instrument included 34 items evaluating the beginning, frequency, and type of violence; the search for health assistance and reporting of the violence; the violence and the number of comorbidities; and violence and the Kupperman Menopausal Index. We also included a control group composed of perimenopausal and postmenopausal women who did not experience any violence (n = 120). Results: The instrument presented a Cronbach alpha = 0.82, good reliability among the examiners (+0.80), and a good possibility of reproducibility. The mean age of menopause was 45.4 years, and the mean age in the control group was 48.1 years. Group 1 showed a mean of 5.1 comorbidities, Group 2 had 4.6, and Group 3 had 4.4. Sexual violence (43.5%) and other types of violence both presented average comorbidities (4.60) but represented a significant impairment in the victim's sexual life. There were significant associations in group 3 and a high Kupperman Menopausal Index score. In the experimental group, 80.6% did not seek health services for the violence they experienced. Conclusions: The questionnaire presented good internal consistency and a validated construction. It can be easily reproduced and is indicated to evaluate the consequences of domestic and/or sexual violence on women's health during climacterium.