Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

8. Risk Assessment & Safety Planning

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Aim of this module

Provide the knowledge and skills to• Understand the importance of risk

assessment and safety planning• Support the patient in

– identifying risk factors for repeating or increasing intimate partner violence

– in developing a safety plan

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Outlook

• Risk factors for repeating/escalating violence

• Risk assessment• Safety planning

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Risk factors for repeating or escalating intimate partner

violence

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Risk factors

• IPV: Isolated occurrences of violence are rare• Chances of repeated offenses are high• Risk of violence increases during separation/divorce• Most murders or serious acts of violence are

committed when a survivor attempts to leave a violent partner

• So, understanding potential risk and supporting the survivor is paramount to her survival

• The more factors that apply in a specific case, the higher the risk is that acts of violence will be repeated or that violence may increase/escalate.

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Specific risk factors• Previous acts of violence against the woman or family

members• Previous acts of violence outside the family• Separation and divorce• Acts of violence committed by other family members• Possession and/or use of weapons• Threats• Extreme jealousy and possessiveness• Extremely patriarchal concepts and attitudes• Persecution and psychological terror (stalking)• Danger for children• Non-compliance with restraining orders by courts or police• Possible triggers

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Risk assessment

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Assessment tools

• Enables criminal justice authorities to decide on actions against the perpetrator

• Enables service providers to support the patient in identifying measures to increase her safety and to raise her awareness of the risk

• Many tools have been developed, e.g. Danger Assessment by Campbell (2004)– 1) a calendar, on which the woman should mark

frequency and severity (on a scale from 1-5) of violent incidents that happened in the past year

– 2) a list of 20 questions, to be answered with yes or no

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Risk assessment

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Acronyms for risk factors – example from UK (SPECSS)

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Safety planning

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Safety planning assistance (1)

• Developing a safety plan may help the woman prepare to leave the relationship safely.

• Health providers should help the woman find affordable safe places to go to like– homes of friends or relatives– referral to women's shelters or women's

organizations

• Low-income women and those from rural or ethnic minority communities often lack resources to leave the abuser or afford alternative places to stay.

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Strengthening Health System Responses to Gender-based Violence in EECA: A resource package

Safety planning assistance (2)

• Health facilities should network with such groups and establish referral pathways.

• In the absence of shelters, consider practical solutions like offering women short-term stays in the facility.

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