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ED and Women’s Refuge team up to take on domestic violence

25 November 2015


ED and Women’s Refuge team up to take on domestic violence


Wellington Regional Hospital’s Emergency Department (ED) now has 24/7 support for victims of domestic violence, thanks to a new partnership with Wellington Women’s Refuge.

In ED all women over the age of 16 are screened for domestic violence and given the option of talking to a support person.

During the day this would be a social worker from the hospital who would give them a safety assessment and offer on-going assistance, now Wellington Women’s Refuge has stepped in to provide an after hour’s service.

“We had been involved with the group who were working on domestic violence screening for some time, and were happy to help,” says Wellington Women’s Refuge manager Philippa McAtee.

“Within one hour we can get one of our trained volunteers down to ED to provide support to these women – whether it’s just to have a chat, to be put in touch with one of our community social workers, or they need to go to our safe house.”

Clinical nurse specialist Jennifer Irving says the response from ED staff performing the screenings has been positive.

“We screen for a number of health issues, providing referrals for people who come in as smokers or frail elderly, and we have been thoughtful introducing the screening into ED to ensure there is support for people, and we are able to identify those people who need help.”

One in three women will experience domestic violence in their lifetime, and where a mother is at risk there is a 70% chance their child may also be in danger.

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