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Domestic Violence Awareness and Prevalence in a First‐year Medical School Class *
Author(s) -
Ernst Amy A.,
Houry Debra,
Nick Todd G.,
Weiss Steven J.
Publication year - 1998
Publication title -
academic emergency medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.221
H-Index - 124
eISSN - 1553-2712
pISSN - 1069-6563
DOI - 10.1111/j.1553-2712.1998.tb02577.x
Subject(s) - medicine , spouse , socioeconomic status , family medicine , domestic violence , demography , injury prevention , poison control , medical emergency , population , environmental health , sociology , anthropology
Objective: To determine knowledge about domestic violence (DV), the effectiveness of formal instruction about DV, and the prevalence of DV in a first‐year medical school class. Methods: A general‐knowledge survey of DV was given before and approximately 1 month after 3 hours of instruction provided by emergency medicine and internal medicine faculty. A previously validated scale, the Index of Spouse Abuse (ISA), was offered to determine baseline levels of DV within the group. Differences in first‐year medical student knowledge of facts about DV and differences in responses by men vs women were determined before and after the instruction. Results: In the pre‐instruction series, 144 of 148 (97%) participated. After the instruction, 141 of the same 148 students participated (95%). The prevalence of DV against women was correctly identified by 45% of the students as “15–30%” prior to instruction, and 65% after instruction. The prevalence of DV against males was correctly identified as “0–15%” by 48% of the students prior to instruction, and 70% after instruction. Before instruction, 29% of the students knew that “DV rates are equal in different socioeconomic groups,” vs 72% after instruction. Similarly, prior to instruction 58% of the students knew that the victim is not responsible for the abuse, and 84% knew this after instruction. Before instruction 14 (10%) of the students believed they were victims of DV in the past, representing 7% of the men and 13% of the women. Before instruction neither group believed they were present victims of DV. However, according to ISA scoring, 6% of the women were positive for violence in the past, and approximately 5% were positive for present violence. No men were positive for ISA‐determined past or present violence. Conclusion: Improvement in awareness was demonstrated after 3 hours of instruction in a first‐year medical school class. There was DV among female medical students in this first‐year class and self‐reporting was not reliable. These results support instruction on DV for medical students.