What is the response to gender-based violence in the healthcare system?
Gender violence has a negative impact on the health and integrity of women and is considered a public health problem. As a consequence of exposure to gender-based violence, victims are generally in poorer health than other women and frequently visit health centers. In this sense, the health care system can prevent, detect and mitigate gender-based violence, and it is essential to consider the role of health care professionals, whom women consider to be their point of reference for disclosing their situation.
But what is being done in the health field to address this problem? At the University of Granada, a group of researchers from the Laboratory of Social Psychology and Gender (https://www.pps-ugr.es/labs/psicologia-social-y-genero/) addressed this question through two complementary studies. The results showed that, in general, the protocols for the care of gender violence from health centers in Spain show homogeneity and comply with the guidelines proposed by the World Health Organization. However, they are still insufficient to deal effectively with this problem because health professionals surveyed encounter obstacles to responding to gender-based violence in the consultation room, such as lack of time and training, emotions of fear, frustration or helplessness, as well as cultural, educational and political factors.
In short, a greater institutional commitment is required to act against gender-based violence in the healthcare system and to train professionals who care for women in the application of protocols, as well as in the understanding of the problem in order to support the victims.
Reference: Badenes-Sastre, M., Lorente Acosta, M., Beltrán-Morillas, A. M., & Expósito, F. (2023). Obstacles and limitations in the use of protocols responding intimate partner violence against women from the health system in Spain. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 26, e23. Doi:10.1017/SJP.2023.22
Contact:
Marta Badenes Sastre (@email)
Miguel Lorente Acosta (@email)
Ana María Beltrán Morillas (@email)
Francisca Expósito Jiménez (@email)