The Problem of Domestic Violence

On the 3rd of November 2009, while vacillating on when to commence a series of articles on Domestic Violence, I got a frantic call from a patient who identified herself and asked if I had X-Ray facility in my hospital, I said no. She booked an appointment to see me. At the clinic, she complained of severe pains in the left upper arm that made it difficult for her to lift the arm, hence she wanted an X-Ray to rule out fracture of the affected limb. She admitted to having been beaten by her fiance over an argument the previous night. After medical treatment and counseling, my parting words were "Think very well if this is the sort of man you would want to get married to."

Domestic violence can be defined as violence in a home setting in which a more powerful person uses force to gain or maintain power and control over an intimate partner. While domestic violence commonly describes a relationship between husband and wife, it also covers child abuse and elder abuse. Domestic violence is a chronic abuse of power which typically starts with years of intimidation and control that later degenerates in to a pattern of assault or coercive behaviors which a partner currently living together with the victim or has been dating or cohabiting employs against the other person. It includes such acts as wife beating, husband beating, murder, negligent homicide, justifiable homicide, kidnapping, rape and forcible sodomy, sexual assault with an object, forcible fondling, robbery, simple and aggravated assault. Domestic violence does not include acts carried out in self defense.

Domestic violence has a global spread and is present in developed countries like United Kingdom and the United States where there are laws against it. It is rampant in developing countries where the practice is entrenched in many cultures particularly cultures where a wife is considered as the husband's property. Recognition of domestic violence as a social problem evolved very slowly from when the British Common Law once allowed a man to "chastise" his wife with "any reasonable instrument", to the present day where it is a punishable crime in many developed countries. In the United States, from 1800 to 1895 it was tolerated, until women were allowed to divorce their husband on grounds of abuse. The 1994 Violence Against Women Act gave legal and financial support for law enforcement and social services to protect battered women.

In Nigeria, the Lagos State Government of Babatunde Fashola in October 2009 provided a shelter for battered women; this is a sign of Government's recognition of domestic violence as a growing social and public health problem. Hitherto, only some non-governmental and faith-based organizations have been catering to the needs of battered women in Nigeria.

Data on domestic violence could be mind boggling; women in the US are more likely to have been injured, raped, or murdered by a male partner than by all other types of attackers. One in seven women going to the doctor's office in the US has a history of partner abuse; 2 to 5% of women who are treated in a hospital's emergency department are there for an injury from domestic violence while one in four women who attempted suicide is being abused. Twice as many women report sexual assault by their husbands as report assault by strangers. For many countries, there are no records to show the extent of this problem.

The issue of domestic violence must be addressed in all fronts because of the untold sufferings of the victims as well as the collateral damages inflicted on children from such homes.

This article was written by Dr Francis Edo Olotu, Physician, Family Counselor, Author, Conference Speaker and host of the Blog Empowering Dads. Email address: empoweringdads@gmail.com. Visit his blog http://www.empoweringdads.wordpress.com for a rich diversity of articles on family and health issues.