ATTITUDES OF HEALTH WORKERS IN FAMILY HEALTH CENTERS ON THE INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN (THE CASE OF MARDIN, TURKEY)

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the attitudes and practices of health workers working in Family Health Centers in Mardin regarding the intimate partner violence against women. This study was carried out with doctors, nurses, midwives and health officials working at Family Health Centers in Mardin. The study was conducted with 307 health workers. In this study, socio-demographic questionnaire and Health Care Provider Survey of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) Attitudes and Practice were used as a data collection tools. The data was analyzed in the SPSS 20 statistics programme. As a result of the study, it was found that the adequacy level of the attitudes and practices of health workers regarding the intimate partner violence against women was low throughout the study. A statistically significant difference was found between the attitudes and practices of health workers regarding the intimate partner violence against women and occupational, gender, education status, workplace, reporting of violence to the police and the social services (p <0.05). It has been determined that health workers are concerned about their own safety and think about possible legal consequences when questioning the violence against women. As a conclusion health workers should be informed and supported with effective trainings on violence against women.