Search results

This paper aims to estimate the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) in the UK general population and in the low-risk clinical population and to identify the methodological challenges presented by this task.

A rapid review of the evidence was conducted. Data were extracted with the help of pre-designed tools and were synthesised to answer the two study aims. The data extracted was both qualitative and quantitative.

In the general population, crime survey data gave a range of past-year IPV prevalence from 1.8% to 4.5%. This was higher in women than men (2.5%–6.3% vs 0.9%–2.7%). In both the general and low-risk clinical population, there was little data on pregnant women or gay men and lesbians. No significant relationships between IPV and ethnicity were found. Different surveys used different definitions of IPV and domestic violence, making it difficult to give an accurate estimate. There were also problems with data accuracy.

This research is original and contributes to the knowledge about IPV screening and if prevalence studies help.

The purpose of this paper is to estimate the accuracy and effectiveness of screening tools and subsequent interventions in the detection and treatment of intimate partner violence (IPV) in non-high-risk settings (defined here as those in which routine IPV screening does not take place in the UK, such as in general practice).

Rapid review as defined by Grant and Booth – it is used under time or financial constraint to assess what is known using systematic review methods. Medline, PsycINFO, Embase and Cochrane Library databases to May 2019 were searched for “intimate partner violence” and synonyms plus terms related to screening and interventions. A Medline update was performed in August 2020. Data were extracted with the help of a predesigned tool and were synthesised to answer the two study aims. Data were mixed quantitative and qualitative.

The search yielded 10 relevant papers on screening (6 on accuracy and 4 on effectiveness) and 13 on intervention. These showed evidence of the effectiveness of simple screening tools and of subsequent interventions. However, the evidence was insufficient to support a change in UK guidelines which currently do not recommend their use outside of current high-risk environments.

Clinicians outside of high-risk areas should consider the use of some IPV screening tools and interventions but only within research protocols to gather further evidence.

“Honour”-based violence (HBV), a form of gender-based violence (GBV), has received increasing interest from media, human rights organisations, academics and the public. A significant increase in the occurrence and reporting of HBV in many parts of the world and its detrimental impact on the health and well-being of women, girls, communities and wider society; marks it as a major public health concern. However, awareness and recognition of HBV in the field of public health is low in many countries and there is little known about its nature, roots and distribution. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

The literature was searched using the Scopus database and a series of search terms related to HBV, GBV and health and well-being.

Definition of HBV and its forms is varied across cultures. There is a lack of consensus on how HBV can be identified over other forms of violence and no explicit theoretical perspectives have been sufficiently developed to deepen the understanding of HBV. Although the findings from the review suggest that HBV forms and patterns may be regionally distinct, causes emanate from gender-based and socio-economic inequalities.

This review has limitations in that it included only English and Spanish language papers and those accessed through Scopus; it therefore may have excluded papers from other languages, countries and databases. Another major weakness in this review was a lack of papers specifically dedicated to HBV. Despite these weaknesses the paper is an attempt to raise awareness and recognition of HBV in public health research, policy and practice domain.

The findings from the review highlight the complexity of tackling HBV in a globalised world. They also provide insights on how a public health model can be used to analyse both the causes and prevention of HBV. Further, a non-culturalised, unprejudiced and inclusive definition is required to flag-up and record HBV cases.

This article analyses and discusses spatial conditions contributing to confidentiality in HIV healthcare facilities carried out by two non-governmental organisations in Uganda, the AIDS Information Centre (AIC) and The AIDS Support Organisation (TASO). The provision of confidential space was found to be the most important architectural quality promoting client wellbeing, where Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) as well as ongoing services to people living with HIV are provided. The study shows that confidential space is a requirement in a number of situations: when the client approaches the health centre; during the visit; and in the meeting between client, counsellor and medical staff. An unobtrusive location of the centre and separate, private counselling rooms are thus the most favourable spatial conditions.

This article is based on a qualitative, explorative case study carried out in Jinja, Uganda during four months in 2004. Direct observation, interviews, primarily with clients and staff, spatial analyses and a qualitative content analysis were carried out.

The purpose of this paper is to extend a theory of health promoting schools (Markham and Aveyard, 2003) that draws heavily upon Nussbaum’s Aristotelian interpretation of good human functioning (Nussbaum, 1990). This theory of health promoting schools proposed that health is grounded in the meeting of identified fundamental human needs and the realisation of identified essential human capacities (Markham and Aveyard, 2003).

The extension of this theory is achieved through the application of influential social theories with practical tenets to Nussbaum’s insights (Nussbaum, 1990). This extension includes additional essential human capacities, a description and definition of how good human functioning may be recognised, potential limitations of the capabilities approaches and a discussion of major factors inhibiting good human functioning.

The potential contribution of the outlined framework to discussions of health and health promotion is highlighted in two ways. First, this paper considers how the outlined framework may contribute to discussions of quality of life, morbidity/premature mortality and health-related behaviours. Second, this paper briefly considers how the outlined framework may contribute to discussions of public health policy, and the planning, delivery and evaluation of health promotion initiatives. Basic exemplar pre- and post-questionnaires for a hypothetical health promoting community development programme are offered.

This paper attempts to contribute to discussions of the application of Nussbaum’s Aristotelean interpretation of good human functioning to both public health and health promotion.

There have been increased concerns about disciplinary procedures in relation to adult safeguarding. The purpose of this paper is to argue that the personal “boundary attitude” of workers is a strong component of their response to issues that have a safeguarding dimension.

This study reports an analysis of questionnaire responses and data generated from interactive training events.

The data suggest most workers adopt a personal stance or “boundary attitude” that drives their response to many of the diverse circumstances they face at the interface of their professional and personal life.

The particular profession, stage in career development or work environment may affect staff responses and this needs further exploration.

There are implications for how services identify the most effective workers and their least effective colleagues, as well as for staff selection and training. Improving our understanding of boundary attitude will help to protect vulnerable people from abuse whilst supporting them to have a full life.

A better understanding of whether staff who maintain rigid boundaries deliver better outcomes than their colleagues who exercise substantial flexibility will help in recruitment, supervision and safeguarding activities.

The paper explores an under‐recognised issue in adult safeguarding, the personal “boundary attitudes” of staff, and their impact on judgements that affect a range of professional decisions they take.

Healthcare systems are increasing in complexity, and to ensure people can use the system effectively, health organizations are increasingly interested in how to take an organizational health literacy (OHL) approach. OHL is a relatively new concept, and there is little evidence about how to successfully implement organizational health literacy interventions and frameworks. This study, a literature review, aims to explore the operationalization of OHL.

A realist literature review, using a systems lens, was undertaken to examine how and why the operationalization of OHL contributed to changes in OHL and why interventions were more effective in some contexts than others. Initial scoping was followed by a formal literature search of Medline, CINAHL plus, Web of Science, Scopus, Embase and PsychINFO for original peer-reviewed publications evaluating OHL interventions until March, 2018.

The search strategy yielded 174 publications; 17 of these were included in the review. Accreditation, policy drivers, executive leadership and cultures of quality improvement provided the context for effective OHL interventions. The dominant mechanisms influencing implementation of OHL interventions included staff knowledge of OHL, internal health literacy expertise, shared responsibility and a systematic approach to implementation.

This study outlines what contexts and mechanisms are required to achieve particular outcomes in OHL operationalization. The context in which OHL implementation occurs is critical, as is the sequence of implementation.

Health services seeking to implement OHL need to understand these mechanisms so they can successfully operationalize OHL. This study advances the concept of OHL operationalization by contributing to the theory underpinning successful implementation of OHL.