SPRINGHOUSE, PA (August 16, 2001) -- Studies estimate that as many as 3 million incidents of domestic violence occur worldwide every year. An estimated half of all domestic violence victims report their injuries, 1 so nurses are in a unique position to offer victims of domestic violence real ways to find safety, according to an article in this month's Nursing2001. Knowing the tactics used by nurses to identify and assist victims can be helpful to victims or those who suspect a friend may be a victim.

The author of the article, June Sheehan Berlinger, is a survivor of domestic violence, a nurse, and an expert on domestic abuse. She provides inside details on why people stay in abusive relationships and why abusers feel entitled to control their partners, along with a list of conditions and behaviors that people who are abused often display.

"A nurse's job isn't to cure a patient or solve her problems," said Berlinger. "But, she will offer tools and options that will help the patient make her own decisions."

A nurse will also take other appropriate actions to keep the victim safe, such as asking questions about domestic violence only when she and the victim have total privacy. She will make sure that the victim's chart isn't left where unauthorized people, such as the abuser, could read it. The nurse will listen without judging, provide emotional support, and help the woman get in touch with a victim advocate. She will also document the woman's condition carefully and completely. The victim's patient records can help her successfully prosecute the abuser, resolve child custody issues, or obtain court protection.

"A nurse may be the first non-family member that a victim turns to for help," said Berlinger. But, friends or family members can use the same professional approach that nurses take to help a victim of abuse.

Award-winning Nursing 2001 is one of the largest nursing journals in the world, and serves as a premier hands-on clinical resource for the practicing nurse. Nursing2001 is owned and published by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, a unit of Wolters Kluwer International Health & Science (WKIHS). WKIHS companies offer specialized publications and software in nursing, medicine, pharmacy, science, and related areas.

June Sheehan Berlinger, RN, BSN, is the Coordinator of Clinical Programs for the Florida State University Center for Prevention and Early Intervention.

1. Family Violence Prevention Fund website (http://www.fvpf.org)

---Wolters Kluwer International Health & Science

Back to The Science of Mental Health