NoVA Research, Studies, & Special Projects

As part of our commitment to ending violence and abuse, the Non-Violence Alliance is committed to research that will advance the field of batterer intervention. Working independently and with research partners like Dr. Emily Rothman, Matrix Public Health Consultants, and EncompassGroup, we are currently involved in research on:

• Batterers as Fathers
• Improvements in the Child Protection
• Effectiveness of Batterer Intervention Programs in Correctional Settings
• Program Outcomes and Screening for Batterers in Medical Settings

Screening for Perpetrators in Medical Settings

Most batterers who receive intervention are identified by the courts or child protection agencies. This means that many batterers, who regularly utilize mental health and medical settings, are not being identified and being offered help. In attempt to demonstrate the potential of screening for batterers in medical settings, Dr. Joseph Teel and the Non-Violence Alliance (with the support of St. Francis Hospital and Medical Center’s CHIIP program) is piloting a screening protocol at three local area family practice clinics.

The goal of the project is to demonstrate the potential of screening for and identification of domestic violence perpetration by measuring the results of providing family practice physicians with specific training in screening for the perpetration of domestic violence along with a screening protocol and referral resources.

To gather a baseline measure about current screening practices, the family practice physicians are being asked to complete a survey on their current screening practices for perpetration, adult and child victimization related to family violence. A second baseline measure will be taken at the Non-Violence Alliance, where clients, upon intake, will be asked if a Middlesex Hospital medical staff person has referred them to batterer intervention program. (The Non-Violence Alliance is the only batterer intervention program in the area served by the three clinics.) This will provide for a comparison between the numbers of clients who identify being referred from the hospital once the new protocol has been instituted (without breaching patient confidentiality.)

A screening protocol is being piloted at the three sites with two doctors at each site. Once the protocol has been tested and refined the entire medical staff will be trained in the dynamics of domestic violence and a universal screening protocol to be instituted at all new patient visits and yearly physicals.

Measurements to determine the screening and identification rate of perpetration will be taken at two points after the protocol has been instituted. For the first month after the training, all the doctors will be asked to complete a one page check off box sheet after each yearly physical and new patient appointment. This sheet will ask the doctor to indicate whether they screened for perpetration , whether perpetration was positively identified, whether a referral or some other action was taken, the level of identified violence and basic demographic information (age, race, gender, sexual orientation, relationship to victim, children). There will be no identifying information on the sheets in order to protect patient confidentiality. The number of sheets submitted can be compared to the official record of yearly physical and new patient appointments for that month to confirm the response rate from the doctors.

The doctors will then be asked to complete these same forms six months after the introduction of the protocol. This will accomplish two things. First, it will increase the sample size. Second, it will allow for the measurement of whether screening drops off after a period of time.

Doctors will also be asked to participate in interviews to ascertain additional information about their observations and reactions to screening for the perpetration of domestic violence.

The hope is that the doctors participating in the study will learn techniques and procedures for identifying and intervening with an issue that can create serious physical and mental health damage to perpetrators, victims, and their families.

Patients may benefit from screening for perpetration in the following ways: (1) Medical professionals are well positioned to approach perpetrators from the perspective of their overall health and well-being. This may help perpetrators see the overall effects of their behavior on their emotional and physical health, including interpersonal relationships and children. (2) As healthcare professionals, the status a patient assigns to doctors as professionals may help him or her absorb a positive message about needed to address violent and abusive behavior. (3) Medical appointments provide an excellent forum for reaching perpetrators who may not ever be confronted with police or criminal justice involvement.