Nurses and barriers to screening for intimate partner violence.
OBJECTIVE
To elicit thoughts from perinatal and emergency room nurses about barriers to screening for intimate partner violence (IPV).


METHODS
A survey was developed and distributed in hospitals and on a national perinatal listserv. Three hundred eighty-five nurses responded.


RESULTS
Responses were grouped by content into the four most prominent categories: lack of privacy and time, need for resources and protocols, legal questions, and personal belief issues. The survey found that time alone with the patient to ask sensitive questions and offer support and safety information is a challenge for nurses, as are language barriers.


CONCLUSIONS
Nurses who completed this survey suggested that routine screening intervals during prenatal care and after delivery may improve identification of IPV, because privacy may be less of a challenge in a clinic or office. Nurses would like brief, clear resources that include local IPV services and hotline numbers. They also would like regular continuing education about IPV in the clinical setting, including all aspects of IPV assessment, identification, and management.
Women's Imaging, Mountainside Hospital, Montclair, NJ, USA. kfurniss@gmail.com
Kathleen
K
Furniss
Mary
M
McCaffrey
Vereene
V
Parnell
Susan
S
Rovi
D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence; D002985:Clinical Protocols; D003219:Confidentiality; D016529:Emergency Nursing / Q000458:organization & administration; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006297:Health Services Accessibility / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D016365:Liability, Legal; D008396:Maryland; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000451:nursing / Q000458:organization & administration*; D020380:Needs Assessment / Q000458:organization & administration*; D017283:Neonatal Nursing / Q000458:organization & administration; D009515:New Jersey; D024802:Nurse's Role; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital / Q000193:education / Q000458:organization & administration / Q000523:psychology*; D017751:Safety Management; D020377:Self Efficacy; D013179:Spouse Abuse / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D017748:Time Management; D017749:Total Quality Management / Q000458:organization & administration; D016526:Workload