Domestic violence as a relevant problem in family medicine

Background. One of the most appalling social problems of the 21st-century family medicine is child abuse. It is defined as any action undertaken by an adult person, a community or a country, both deliberately and unintentionally, which has detrimental effects on a child's health and development. Especially the youngest children are in danger of maltreatment and its consequences stay for the rest of life. This is why the prevention of domestic violence is a crucial task of family medicine. Objectives. The aim of the study was to assess nurses and midwives' competence to prevent newborn abuse. Material and methods. Opinion poll involved 175 persons, 37.14% of midwives and 63.86% of nurses employed in neonatal and maternity wards in the West Pomeranian Region. Results. In their professional work, 46.8% of the surveyed had contact with the newborns who were subject to emotional harassment (42.8%), and 6.3% with those sexually molested. About 59% of the respondents were familiar with children's rights; 71.5% attended training on abuse prevention. Some 37% pointed to parents' economic status as a risk of child-abusing and a factor disturbing parents-child relationship. Kangaroo Care was used by 70% of respondents to develop an emotional bond with a newborn baby. The fact of having a baby was reported to the basic health care institutions by 78% of the surveyed. The competence to protect a newborn against violence was gained by 25.71%. It was proved that there is the relation between knowledge and ability to protect a baby against violence (a > p = 0.00008). Skills were the stronger correlate in competence achievement. Conclusions. 1. The study suggests that nurses and midwives lack competence to prevent newborn abuse. 2. To realize medical care of a newborn baby in family environment and minimize violence risk factors, nurses and midwives employed in hospital wards should follow a procedure for handling cases of suspected risk of newborn abuse and report the birth of a baby to the basic health care and multidisciplinary institutions.