Domestic Violence as it Relates to Pregnancy - Research Paper Example

? Domestic Violence The paper is aimed at building a relationship between domestic violence and pregnancy. Medical professionals play a very crucial role in extending support and assistance so as to reduce the level of domestic violence and its adverse effects over the mental and physical health of both mother and child. It is the prime responsibility of nurses to identify such cases existing in the society and provide sufficient help to them. Nurses can also play their part in resolving husband wife conflicts through proper intervention and counseling. In this paper the possible ways of identifying victims of domestic violence are discussed. Additionally, the roles through which I would be addressing this issue are also mentioned. Domestic Violence as it relates to Pregnancy Introduction Women have been experiencing domestic violence since the start of this world and its intensity has been noticed to increase especially during pregnancy. This leads to pre and post pregnancy complications which require immediate corrective actions under the supervision of an experienced nurse (Shah PS, 2010). As a professional nurse I once encountered a patient who was suffering from intense domestic violence for more than a year. Throughout the pregnancy period her husband practiced battering over her which ultimately led to poor health of both the baby and the mother. She had severe complications during her delivery which also resulted in improper development of her child. The child was significantly underweight and was highly sensitive to common diseases. The overall situation got even worst when the patient could not get the assistance of a satisfactory nurse. This example raises questions that what should be the role of nurses when they are particularly dealing with such patients? How domestic violence is related to pregnancy and what nursing care considerations are required? What are the possible impacts of battering over the patient, new born baby and the overall family setup? Finally, how I would be addressing all these issues in my future nursing career? An overview of domestic violence as it relates to pregnancy Domestic violence during pregnancy is also termed as the Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) which commonly occurs during pregnancy and ultimately ends in severe outcomes including high stress level during pregnancy, usage of drugs which further worsen the condition of mother and child, preterm delivery, significantly low weight child, susceptibility to infectious diseases and lower level of child care soon after delivery. This indicates that domestic violence is highly hazardous for pregnant women and its poor outcomes even intensify if violence continues after the child birth. Children who are raised in sadistic homes are naturally aggressive and practice the some behavior with their future partners as they have observed in their childhood. Domestic violence simply adds significant value to the overall treatment and care cost of pregnant women. The role of nurses is very crucial in this regard as they provide first hand care to such women and also look after their child in adverse conditions. It is the initial responsibility of nurses to identify such cases existing in the society and then provide them suitable guidance so as to end violence in their lives (LR, 2008). Nursing care considerations related to domestic violence assessment The question about domestic violence usually occurs when a patient shows substantial symptoms of battering, inadequate prenatal care, higher occurrence of high-risk behaviors, direct physical trauma, increased stress and postulated mechanisms (Shah PS, 2010). Majority of women entering first time into the medical assistance clinics during their pregnancy period which is also their encounter to a medical professional require special attention and care from the health care service provider. Therefore, professionals who are in direct contact with pregnant women maintain a distinctive position in the society as they closely witness the marital violence and its adverse outcomes on the pregnant women. Research indicates that pregnant women also expect that their health care providers will identify the symptoms of domestic violence and subsequently will help them in order to minimize its effects and harmful consequences over the child development. This indicates that medical professionals especially dealing with pregnant women should project questions directly because women often find it hard to initiate a conversation related to domestic violence and poor marital relationship however; they are always ready to answer direct questions which puts them at ease and it is also beneficial for the medical professional as they can easily win the patient’s confidence and trust though this technique. The initial assessment process is very important as violence on pregnant women can result in fatal conditions. Initial screening processes must include all the test and questions related to detailed assessment of stress and pregnancy. Information should be collected from both partners. Interference of medical professionals results in reduction of stress for both partners and leads to significant stability in the marital relationship of patients. However; inappropriate or unplanned interference of professionals might also result in getting the situation even worst then before therefore the medical professionals especially nurses needs to be very careful while making an intervention especially during the counseling sessions (Jasinski, 2004). The impacts of battering on individual client, new born and the family Domestic violence might occur during pregnancy due to various reasons including the suspect of reduced attention from women due to another family member, increased financial stress, etc. One of the most common forms of domestic violence which is particularly practiced with pregnant women is battering. It does not necessarily increases during the pregnancy period however; it is usually initiated when women is found pregnant. Battering is practiced to harm women in every possible way as women are more sensitive during this period therefore small attempt of battering also results in significant consequences. Some of the possible impacts over the individual client, new born baby and on the entire family are discussed below (Faller, 2012): Battering increases the risk of miscarriage because men who do not want child in early years of their marriage often try to hit their wives in a way that they encounter miscarriage. This is usually done in a preplanned manner but sometimes it happens naturally as battering pregnant women reduces her physical strength to fight against any such situation. Battering at specific areas might impose serious injuries to the fetus which ultimately leads to premature and significantly low weight birth. In this situation mother is also at a greater risk of death because if the fetus raptures during physical assault then women might die due to the spread of toxic materials into the blood stream. While on the other hand child faces long term developmental issues. After the delivery mothers who have been a victim of battering all through their pregnancy period decline to take sufficient care of their new born babies especially in the pre-natal period. This subsequently leads to increased frustration which is then released on other family members. Consequently the whole family setup gets from bad to worst influencing the new born child as well. The mother child relationship is strongly influenced by the battering factor especially if women give birth to a male child. This happens because the male child continuously reminds her of her partner and the bad memories of battering. This reduces the love intensity from mother side which leaves the child as the real victim of the whole situation. Battering is also directly related with the physical abuse practiced over children. Men who are accustomed of battering their partners usually maintain same attitude with their children as well. However in other intense situations mothers who have experienced battering in their marital life also physically assault their children as they do not maintain emotional attachment with them and also because they consider them a reflection of their partners. The physical and mental assessment findings that the nurse may observe in a client who has been recently battered or battered in the past The medical professional especially nurse who is dealing with pregnant women can easily identify recently battered or patients who have experienced battering in past through mental and physical assessments. For instance; the uterus of battered women is usually hurt or shows poor appearance, these women maintain a historical record of miscarriage or premature births which indicates that they have been a victim of battering. Additionally they might have fatal vaginal infections, obvious marks of hurting or pushing present all over the body. These women have significantly higher level of stress and emotional trauma which restricts them in performing day to day routine activities including child care and household work. They also feel uncomfortable in communicating about their marital relationship which clearly signifies their unsatisfactory state of mind. Lastly, they do not have very large social circle rather they prefer isolated life style (Patient Education: Domestic Violence and Pregnancy, 2013). My plan as a future nurse to address this issue There are various roles attached to the field of nursing for instance; researcher, advocate, caregiver, educator, etc. all of these roles facilitates an individual nurse to perform his/her duties more effectively and efficiently. I would be performing the role of advocate and educator in my future nursing career especially to deal with the cases of domestic violence in relation to pregnancy. Advocate: I would be joining National Domestic Violence Association so as to listen to the queries and problems of affected women and also to advocate them to bring ease in their marital lives and also to smooth their pregnancy period. The National Domestic Violence Hotline allows women to report domestic violence and their pregnancy issues so that they can support them through every possible means (Relationships during pregnancy: Domestic violence during pregnancy, 2013) . Educator: Educating women about their basic human rights is very important in this regard because majority of women who are continuous victim of battering and other forms of domestic violence lack educational background about their legal and human rights. This creates hindrance for them to get medical assistance during pregnancy and also to communicate about their marital issues to the medical professionals even if they get a chance to do so. As a future nurse I would be advocating affected women about potential solutions to get rid of domestic violence and I will also educate women about the future suspect of domestic violence and what they should do if they encounter such an adverse situation (Relationships during pregnancy: Domestic violence during pregnancy, 2013). Conclusion Domestic violence is an emerging issue in the lives of pregnant women which needs to be resolved immediately as it is not only affecting women but also a significant number of future generations. The most important form of domestic violence is battering which results in severe physical and mental conditions. For instance; women might experience continuous stress and emotional trauma, poor health, increased susceptibility to infectious diseases and moreover lack of concentration towards the basic needs of the new born baby while on the other hand child also suffers a lot if his/her mother is a victim of battering for example; such children might have significant developmental issues, premature birth and poor relationships. Due to these adverse outcomes of domestic violence extensive nursing care considerations are required. Medical professionals must try to put direct questions so that they can analyze the symptoms of domestic violence in the first place. This will also help them in formulating the future treatment plans and how they can intervene to bring peace in the marital life of partners. I would be using advocating and educating roles in addressing such issues in my future nursing career. Appendix Around 300,000 women from different ethnic, social and religious background experience domestic violence during their pregnancy. It neither restricted by the race, color or appearance of women nor by her social status or career. Domestic violence is not always categorized as physical abuse rather it can also be practiced through emotional trauma or financial problems. References Faller, K. C. (2012). Domestic abuse and child maltreatment. University of Machigan Jasinski, J. L. (2004). Pregnancy and domestic violence . TRAUMA, VIOLENCE, & ABUSE , 47-64. LR, C. (2008). Intimate partner violence and its implication for pregnancy. Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology , 385-397. Patient Education: Domestic Violence and Pregnancy. (2013). Retrieved Feb 16, 2013, from UCSF Medical Center. Relationships during pregnancy: Domestic violence during pregnancy. (2013). Retrieved Feb 16, 2013, from Baby Center. Shah PS, S. J. (2010). Maternal exposure to domestic violence and pregnancy and birth outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analyses. Journal of Women's Health , 2017-31. Read More