Nursing the social wound: public health nurses' experiences of screening for woman abuse

The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of public health nurses (PHNs) who screen for woman abuse within their clinical practice. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 11 PHNs. There was a great deal of variability in participants' level of experience in wor...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inCanadian journal of nursing research Vol. 38; no. 4; pp. 136 - 153
Main Authors Webster, Fiona, Bouck, Michelle Sangster, Wright, Bonnie Lynn, Dietrich, Pam
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 01.12.2006
Subjects
Adaptation, Psychological
Anger
Attitude of Health Personnel
Clinical Competence
Education, Nursing, Continuing
Fear
Female
Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice
Health Services Needs and Demand
Helping Behavior
Humans
Mass Screening - methods
Mass Screening - nursing
Nurse's Role - psychology
Nurse-Patient Relations
Nursing
Nursing Assessment - methods
Nursing Methodology Research
Nursing Staff - education
Nursing Staff - psychology
Ontario
Public Health Nursing - education
Public Health Nursing - methods
Qualitative Research
Self Efficacy
Social Support
Spouse Abuse - diagnosis
Spouse Abuse - prevention & control
Spouse Abuse - psychology
Ontario
Canada
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Summary:The purpose of this study was to describe the experiences of public health nurses (PHNs) who screen for woman abuse within their clinical practice. Semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted with 11 PHNs. There was a great deal of variability in participants' level of experience in working with abused women. The results reveal that nurse readiness is an important factor in screening for woman abuse. The authors describe a number of steps participants appeared to grapple with in order to become comfortable working with abused women, including coming to terms with abuse, asking the question, bearing witness, and "walking with" the client. As the PHN became increasingly comfortable working with abused women, she came to redefine success. Her client's personal growth over time, rather than the single act of leaving an abusive relationship, now defined a successful client interaction. The authors also discuss implications for practice that arise from these accounts.
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ISSN:0844-5621