Transforming a community to address intimate partner violence
As early as 1985, Surgeon General C. Everett Koop publicly recognized battering as a leading national health problem of “epidemic” proportions. (Surgeon General’s Workshop on Violence and Public Health) Ten years later, the American Medical Association recognized a multidisciplinary approach to family violence as the most effective way of intervening in and preventing future violence. In an effort to more effectively respond to intimate partner violence (IPV), many communities have now begun the process of coordinating services to victims and perpetrators of this crime. In addition they are attempting to prevent future IPV by changing community attitudes through education and raising awareness about what actions individual citizens can take in their communities. It can be difficult to judge the effectiveness of coalition efforts. Communities that have been working toward a goal of safety for all of their citizens are looking for ways to determine if their efforts really make a difference. The rural community of Marquette County Michigan has been working collaboratively on coordinating a response to IPV and working to prevent violence in families for nearly a decade. This presentation will consist of a brief history of the Marquette Coalition, including its challenges and accomplishments. In addition the methods and results of the process and outcomes evaluation administered by the Violence and Intentional Injury Prevention Project of Michigan State University will be discussed.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant will be able to: 1) List strategies for developing a community coalition to address intimate partner violence. 2) Recognize the challenges that may arise in the process of creating a coordinated community response to IPV 3) Identify the unique ways in which rural communities experience and address IPV. 4) Develop means by which to evaluate the various components of a community coordinated response to IPV.
Keywords: Domestic Violence, Community Collaboration
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.