Pakistani obstetricians' recognition of and attitude towards domestic violence screening.
OBJECTIVE
Our study assesses Pakistani obstetricians knowledge of the prevalence of domestic violence in clinical practice and attitudes towards instituting screening protocols during routine antenatal care.


METHODS
One hundred obstetricians, all Karachi residents, were randomly drawn from a stratified sampling list taken from membership lists. A structured questionnaire assessing prevalence, attitudes, and beliefs on training and domestic violence screening protocols was administered.


RESULTS
Nearly 70% of obstetricians reported that more than 30% of Pakistani women are victims of domestic abuse. Sixty-two obstetricians specified that they had identified a physically abused woman within the past year. Almost half of the respondents were favorably inclined to screen patients. Professional, personal and patient-related barriers were identified as the main hurdles preventing instituting screening.


CONCLUSIONS
The desire for instituting routine screening despite the recognition of major hurdles by Pakistani obstetricians should propel reproductive health stakeholders to raise awareness about appropriately modifying standard antenatal care protocols.
The Population Council, International Programs Division, One Dag Hammarskjold Plaza, New York, NY 10017, USA. ffikree@popcouncil.org
F F
FF
Fikree
S N
SN
Jafarey
R
R
Korejo
A
A
Khan
J M
JM
Durocher
D003376:Counseling; D017579:Domestic Violence / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009774:Obstetrics; D010154:Pakistan; D010819:Physician's Role