Enhancing responsiveness to family violence in front line mental health

Background/reason for the presentation: Women are five times more likely than men to require medical
attention or hospitalisation as a result of intimate partner violence, and five times more likely to report
fearing for their lives (Mouzos 1999). Of women who experience family violence 76% in fact do reach out for
help or support (ANROWS 2016). Despite the myriad health issues women present with, the family violence
might go unidentified. This is a terrible missed opportunity where skilled mental health staff could intervene
to assist. A receptive and skilled response from mental health staff – though training, resourcing and skill
development – is likely to positively impact consequences of family violence.
Project aims: To determine and implement the best evidence-based practice tool for family violence
identification and response in public mental health service contexts.
Method: To create a staff training/briefing package and identification and response resource – a “prompt
card”, wearable on the staff lanyard, alongside the ID card, for ready reference.
Results: We will report on trialling this training/briefing package and identification and response resource in
a clinical service setting.
Discussion: We will seek input from the audience regarding transferability and utility to various urban and
regional contexts.