US Domestic Violence: How will you feel Safe at Home?

We are in the grasp of a national pandemic worse than a possible H1N1 flu outbreak. It is domestic violence. You read and hear about it every day. In an infamous case that occurred years ago, a wife cut off her husband’s penis. Another woman torched her husband while he slept. Recently, a man allegedly decapitated his estranged wife. Domestic violence continues to increase across the nation. It does not respect age, race or gender or affluence. Abuse occurs against children, the elderly and spouses or among intimate partners.

In reported cases, almost 5 million and three million physical assaults occur against women and men respectively. However, most cases of assault are not reported. Violence harms millions of families. It appears that the incidence of violence occurs equally to men and women in numbers of assaults. However, the severity of the violence perpetrated by men against women is far greater. Rape and murder are the common crimes men commit.

Domestic violence occurs in all age groups. It can be physical or mental in nature. Sexual assault such as rape is well documented. Economic violence also happens commonly. Depriving a person of food, shelter, clothing, water or money that is needed to survive is neglect and a form of abuse. Emotional mistreatment is another form of cruelty. Psychological abuse through word, threat or an implied act is just as serious as physical violence itself. Domestic violence may have associations with chronic health problems. These areas need to be studied and clarified. Certainly, it is related to some dangerous health behaviors.

Most people want their doctors to ask them about possible abuse, but most physicians do not. In adults without physical signs of abuse, vague symptoms may give a hint of a problem. Depression, fatigue or abuse of drugs and alcohol may be a clue to an underlying problem. Any signs of physical abuse on children must be reported by law. Hospitals routinely now ask specific questions about possible abuse when one is admitted. One question that can begin a dialogue on violence by hospital personnel is: “Do you feel safe at home?”

The long lasting mental effects on young children can be devastating. This is especially true for young males who observe their fathers abusing their mother. Perhaps they are not the victim of the physical abuse, but are they suffer psychologically. They are often chronically affected and unbalanced psychologically from this. When they grow up, statistically they are more commonly an abuser.

We must end this plague. In eliminating the violence, we can help people while at the same time take another step to lowering health care costs for us all.