End to violence

TWO weeks ago, I sat down to watch the nightly news and was confronted with another case of a woman murdered by her partner.

In fact, until July this year there were 34 Australian women murdered, allegedly killed by men they knew.

Family violence is a scourge, a complex and wicked problem too difficult to solve and often hidden behind closed doors — but not any longer.

Two weeks ago, I also sat in St Mary’s Library and Research Centre, full of Barwon Health leaders, staff, community members and our partners working in the family violence space.

This was Barwon Health’s moment to draw a line in the sand.

No longer will family violence be someone else’s issue or problem to solve.

We stand committed to playing our role in creating a community free from family violence.

As we sat in the hall, we heard from Karen (not her real name) — a smart and educated woman who has dedicated her working career to helping others as a health professional, teaching people how to support victim survivors of family violence.

Karen was also a mother, but for 21 years of working and helping others, within the confines of her home she was experiencing systematic and prolonged family violence; physical, emotional, financial.

She knew the theories, the warning signs and what might come next, but family violence doesn’t discriminate. It doesn’t limit itself to race, education, IQ or the size of your pay-packet.

But family violence is a health issue.

The Royal Commission Into Family Violence made clear recommendations around the health system’s role and responsibilities in identifying and responding to it.

Intimate partner violence is the greatest health risk factor (greater than smoking, alcohol and obesity) for women aged 18 to 44 and 41 per cent of hospitalised assaults on women were perpetrated by a partner.

Every three hours in Australia, a woman will be admitted to hospital following a family violence incident.

Healthcare professionals hold a special place in the hearts and minds of their patients.

It is a common occurrence that a person’s first disclosure of family violence will be to a health professional, so it is the response of that health professional that is critical in assisting which pathway a victim survivor will take.

This was Karen’s story also. When she disclosed to her GP, she was listened to, she was believed and she started her journey to safety and the life she leads today — free from violence.

From this week, Barwon Health will train all of its managers in identifying and supporting staff experiencing family violence.

We recognise we need to care for the carers before we can expect them to support others.

We will then train all frontline staff in identifying and responding to patients experiencing family violence. Barwon Health stands hand-inhand with community agencies to make a reality out of the vision for a Victoria free from family violence. I also want to flag the role we all play as individuals. As a father of three boys and a daughter on the way, I long for them to grow up in a world where family violence doesn’t exist. Let’s prevent family violence before it happens. Everyone can contribute to this by recognising family violence is a heavily gendered issue. I call on everyone who reads this to consider the language you use, think about the jokes you make, think about every action you take and every word you utter that portrays women as anything but equal. What’s more, if you see others doing it, call it out. As it was famously said by a former prime minister, “disrespecting women does not always result in violence against women, but all violence against women begins with disrespecting women”. Call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) for family violence support and counselling.

David Meade is Barwon Health’s director of Allied Health and the executive sponsor of the Strengthening Hospital Response to Family Violence.