Call to label domestic violence a public health crisis
A University of Melbourne medical student is calling for domestic violence to be recognized as a public health crisis, citing its devastating impact on Australian women. Gender-based abuse is the leading cause of death and disability for women aged 18-44, with one woman killed by a current or former partner each week.
Gendered violence is a major public health issue in Australia, with one woman killed by a current or former partner each week. A medical student is urging the government to take action, citing limited training for health professionals in recognizing and responding to patient disclosures of violence. The student, Zoe Dowling, has been awarded a scholarship to research large-scale interventions on domestic violence. She believes that gendered violence should be embedded into every year of a medical degree. The federal government's Readiness Program has helped train primary care providers to recognize and respond to domestic and family violence. However, long wait times for support services remain a concern. Dowling emphasizes the importance of safe and appropriate first-line responses to disclosures of violence. She notes that recognition and response education should be coupled with the development of strong pathways to support. The University of Melbourne's Safer Families Centre has developed the Readiness Program, which aims to transform the health system's response to domestic, family, and sexual violence.
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