'Unheard voices': Perceptions of women with mental illness on nurses screening routinely for domestic violence: A qualitative analysis.
Vijayalakshmi Poreddi, S Sai Nikhil Reddy, Sailaxmi Gandhi and 2 others
PMID 34822230WHAT IT FOUND
Women with mental illness reported multiple forms of domestic violence.
They said nurses usually asked only when scars or behaviour changes were visible. They wanted routine, private, respectful screening but feared disbelief and family consequences.
Key findings
01Women with mental illness described physical, psychological, social, sexual and financial domestic violence, often more than one type.
02Nurses were seen as friendly but usually asked about violence only when scars or behaviour changes were visible, not routinely.
03Most participants wanted routine, polite, confidential, believing enquiry by nurses, while fear of family consequences, disbelief, busy staff and helplessness discouraged disclosure.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study was done in one tertiary care centre in India, so the views may not transfer to other settings. Participants were purposively selected and only women with a history of domestic violence who were asymptomatic before discharge were included, so women with acute illness or intellectual disability were not represented. Twenty-four interviews were conducted, but analysis was based on 20 interviews after saturation. Because this is a qualitative study of experiences and opinions, it does not show that routine screening by nurses improves safety, disclosure, mental health or violence outcomes.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that routine domestic violence screening by nurses works. It reports what women with mental illness experienced and what they wanted from nurses, not outcomes after screening.