Domestic violence: Screening made practical

Straus and colleagues⁴⁸ associated contact with community domestic violence resources with a decreased sense of community isolation (LOE: 2c). The National Domestic Violence Hotline (800-799-SAFE) can provide physicians in every state with information on local resources.

Muelleman and Feighny⁴⁹ found that advocacy programs that are available on-site can improve the use of shelters and shelter-based counseling (LOE: 2c). However, there are no studies of suitable quality comparing outcomes for women using shelters with women not using shelters.²⁴ Biasfree samples would be difficult to recruit. One study that evaluated experiences before and after shelter found that women experienced less violence after the shelter stay (LOE: 2c).⁵⁰

Acknowledgments

I thank the faculty and residents of Shadyside Family Practice for their feedback and help with the preparation of this article.

Correspondence
Mallika Punukollu, MD, PO Box B135, Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, HD1 1YG, UK. E-mail:mallika72@hotmail.com.