Digital Commons Network^™

Domestic Violence: Physicians A Link To Prevention, Mary Guinan

Public Health Faculty Publications

Domestic violence may result in more injuries and fatalities for women than automobile crashes, muggings, and rapes combined, but according to a recent editorial, physicians largely ignore the problem. Evidence showed that a majority of women treated at an emergency facility for injuries resulting from violent acts of spouses or other persons known to the victims were discharged without any arrangement being made for their future safety. Physicians rarely inquired about an injury victim's past sexual or physical abuse, living arrangements, or future prospects of safety.