Domestic Violence: What Do Nurse Practitioners Think?

PURPOSE: To examine factors that influence nurse practitioners' (NPs) ability to incorporate universal domestic violence screening practices (e.g., asking, identifying, referring and reporting) into their practices. DATA SOURCES: A stratified random survey of certified NPs in New York state was conducted in 1999. There were 118 family, women's health, OB/GYN, and adult NPs in the survey. Chi-square and ANOVA were used to analyze the data. CONCLUSIONS: There were significant differences in the domestic violence screening practices among women's health, OB/GYN, adult, and family NPs. Women's health and OB/GYN NPs were more likely to ask screening questions and identify victims of domestic violence than their other NP counterparts. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: There is a need to identify strategies that encourage all NPs to incorporate universal domestic violence screening behaviors into their practices.