Domestic Abuse

Question 1

Cycle of Abuse and Warning signs

Answer 1

Honeymoon phase (idealizd and romantic, abuser makes promises to change and to never do it again)

Tension (the abused partner feels growing tension and stress, victims try to control situations and avoid their partners anger “walking on egg shells”)

Explosion
explosion into some type of abusive behavior

Question 2

Clinicians role in domestic abuse

Answer 2

• women will talk when asked about it
• clinician’s role is to identify cases of abuse, assess the patient and her family level of safety, and provide ongoing medical care and non-judgmental support.

Question 3

Screening domestic abuse

Answer 3

Check General appearance: increased anxiety, fatigue, flinching upon touch, overweight, underweight, hypertension, flat affect
 Any injury or multiple injuries: face, neck, chest, breasts, abdomen, and genitalia
 Skin: burns, bruises, old healed scars
 Head: decreased hearing from multiple head blows,
subdural hematomas, headaches
 Eyes: swelling, subconjunctival hemorrhage, detached retina