Abstract
This article analyzes data regarding cases of domestic violence treated by the emergency services through the following: the sociodemographic characteristics of the people who were treated; the events themselves; the evolution of care (from childhood to old age by gender); and the factors that differentiate cases of domestic violence compared to those committed by non-family members. Data from 24 Brazilian state capitals and the Federal District were analyzed, comprising 86 emergency services: a total of 4,893 individuals were surveyed. Of those people who were treated by emergency services, 26.6% suffered domestic violence: 40.0% were children/adolescents, 57.2% were adults and 2.8% were elderly. The adjusted model, which compared victims of violence committed by other family members with those who were not family members, showed that males were less likely to suffer from domestic violence; those that had fewer years of education were at increased risk; and that women were more likely to commit domestic violence compared to the category of "both genders". This study reinforces the fact that health sector professionals need to be able to deal with domestic violence by providing support, performing good practices, abiding by care protocols, taking care of injuries, and facilitating access to other services.
Highlights
This article is the result of epidemiological research that incorporates the monitoring component of the “Violence and Accidents Survey Conducted in Sentinel Emergency Departments[1]
A total of 4,893 individuals were surveyed in relation to access to Brazilian emergency services during the period under investigation
The present study provides a rich, unprecedented approach to the study of domestic violence; it investigates, separately, the stages of the life cycle affected by violence that arrive at the emergency services of various Brazilian state capitals
Summary
This article is the result of epidemiological research that incorporates the monitoring component of the “Violence and Accidents Survey Conducted in Sentinel Emergency Departments[1]. This recent, and highly relevant, monitoring system is a governmental response to the serious context of violence that exists in Brazil, which requires consistent policies from the Ministry of Health. In response to this social demand, the Ministry of Health prioritized attention on the impacts of violence on the health of the population, implementing the following policies: “The National Policy for the Reduction of Morbidity and Mortality due to Accidents and Violence”2, “The National Policy for Emergency Care”[3] and “The National Health Promotion”[4]. The concept of domestic violence focuses on conflicts between family members that are transformed into intolerance, abuse and oppression, but which do not necessarily have the domestic unit as a priority area of occurrence[6]
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