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Domestic violence screening rates in a community health center urgent care clinic
Author(s) -
Thurston Wilfreda E.,
Tutty Leslie M.,
Eisener Amanda E.,
Lalonde Lise,
Belenky Cathie,
Osborne Belinda
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
research in nursing and health
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.836
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1098-240X
pISSN - 0160-6891
DOI - 10.1002/nur.20221
Subject(s) - documentation , medicine , domestic violence , public health , medical emergency , community health center , family medicine , health care , occupational safety and health , poison control , chart , suicide prevention , nursing , political science , pathology , computer science , programming language , statistics , mathematics , law
We describe the screening rates obtained in the first year of implementation of a universal domestic violence screening protocol by nurses in the urgent care clinic of a Canadian community health center. Rates were calculated using data extracted from electronic patient health records, and a random patient chart pull. Qualitative methods provided additional information. Screening rates were considerably higher and were maintained longer than those recorded in similar settings reported in the literature. Leadership, including monitoring of documentation rates, was key to maintaining higher than average rates. Asking all patients in urgent care settings about domestic violence may improve overall screening rates and play an important role in public education. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Res Nurs Health 30:611–619, 2007