Addressing Intimate Partner Violence in the Maternal Health Setting
Over the past few months I have initiated conversations on Instagram surrounding Maternal Health issues, Healthcare challenges, and the ways the Health and Legal world intersect. These conversations are starting points for patients, providers, attorneys and others who may not know what goes on in the health and legal world and how engagement in both matters. This week on Instagram I led conversations around Hidden Epidemics. I touched on topics discussing Breakdowns and Burnout in the Healthcare Setting and provided a solution on how to combat that constant cycle of work, plan a vacation, be rejuvenated then frustrated once again. Later this week I will be discussing The Policing of Black Women in Law and Politics that will dig into the issues that way too many Black women face being lawyers and politicians. I will link that conversation back here once it drops. But the bigger conversation that I led this week touched on how Healthcare Providers can Address Intimate Partner Violence in Maternal Health.
The basis of this conversation stemmed from an article written by the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecology back in 2012. This article breaks down what providers should look for during prenatal visits when providing screenings for patients who may be experiencing intimate partner violence. It also discussed the consequences of intimate partner violence, and the vulnerable populations that are at risk and many times overlooked in domestic violence conversations. The article provided information on the role of the healthcare provider and continued on by giving examples of the type of screening questions that can be used comfortably to get the information needed from the patient in order to provide the necessary support and resources.
Then this article dropped today and it shook me to my core. A Nurse Practitioner who was six months pregnant was murdered by her partner then dumped on the side of the road here in New York. This woman was herself a healthcare provider, educated and engaged in the healthcare setting as a patient, and yet something was missed. Was she screened for intimate partner violence, was she provided resources on how to safely escape her relationship without putting herself in danger, or did people assume that because she was young, healthy and a provider that those questions were not important?
Data shows that some women are first abused when they are pregnant while women who were already being abused experience an increase in abuse during their pregnancy. We know that physical abuse can lead to pre-term labor, vaginal bleeding, and physical injuries to a mother or the baby. The psychological impact of abuse has long term effects that take years to undue. Even more so women who are disabled have even higher rates of abuse during pregnancy and have even less resources and support in order to escape their abusive situations.
There is no blanket solution to eradicating intimate partner violence, but healthcare providers are the safety net for these mothers and babies who may be in danger. The first step in addressing intimate partner violence in the maternal health setting starts with properly screening every pregnant mother that is in your care. Best practices speak to the ways in which this conversation can happen and many electronic medical record systems have the screening questions integrated into the system, which makes it easy for staff and providers to ask the questions without having to formulate their own tools when discussing intimate partner violence. Providing easily digestible information in the form of pamphlets or flyers with hotline numbers and resources that the patient can use when they are ready to seek help is also key. Offering regularly scheduled training for your staff and providers to ensure that they know what to look for in patients who may be experiencing intimate partner violence, what resources there are available to those mothers who may need help, and how to ensure that information is conveyed discreetly and remains confidential even if the partner may be present for the visit. All of this information is vital to decrease incidence of unreported intimate partner violence and to increase the ability of these women and babies to have a healthy chance at life without the stress of abuse in their life.
Check out the various links in this article to learn more and to find various resources that can help you as a patient or provider. You can see more of my weekly talks here and learn more about me and my practice at my website.