Today is International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and the beginning of the United Nations’ global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence campaign- an opportune moment to talk about family violence.
As the world went through the COVID-19 pandemic, research indicated the emergence of a ‘Shadow Pandemic’, with incidents of family violence increasing as a result. This means that, incidentally, we were likely to see more presentations of family violence to our health service.
While lockdown restrictions may have been lifted, we are still seeing the impact of the pandemic play out in the community. That is why, now more than ever, it’s important to equip ourselves with the knowledge and skills we need to help those experiencing family violence. This year, there are a number of ways you can get involved in the 16 Days of Activism:
Online events
There are several online events, being run by various organisations, that you can register to attend. You can find more information, including dates and times here.
Complete your family violence training
It is important to ensure that you are prepared to handle presentations of family violence within our health service. Family violence training helps employees better understand family violence, how to respond and refer. The Family Violence team will be running online training sessions in the new year, for both clinicians and managers. You can book in for the following dates:
Clinician training:
- Tuesday 8 February 2022, 10am-11am
- Wednesday 9 March 2022, 2pm-3pm
- Tuesday 5 April 2022, 11am-12pm
Manager training:
- Tuesday 22 February 2022, 11am-12pm
- Wednesday 23 March 2022, 2pm-3pm
- Wednesday 27 April 2022, 1pm-2pm
You can book into a session on Latte.
Know the Monash Health family violence clinical guideline
The clinical guideline has been developed to help you understand, identify and respond to family violence. You can access the guideline on PROMPT.
Often, when dealing with a presentation of family violence, you may not know what to do next. Within the guideline, the team has included a useful flowchart. The flowchart outlines the steps you should take in the situation, including when it is appropriate to contact the Family Violence team for a secondary consultation.
The team is always on hand to support you and to help you navigate presentations of family violence. You can contact them by email or phone (0484 674 894).
Approved by A/Prof Naomi Dobroff