Burden of Intimate Partner Violence among Nurses and Nursing Students in a Tertiary Hospital in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, Nigeria

Abstract

Introduction Nurses are the largest healthcare workforce and are not immune to intimate partner violence (IPV) and its consequences. Objective This study is aimed at determining the prevalence, types of IPV, and its determinants among female nurses and nursing students in a tertiary teaching hospital in Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, Nigeria. Methods This cross-sectional study was done in a teaching hospital in Abakaliki between 1st March 2018 and 31st May 2018 to evaluate the prevalence of IPV in the past 12 months among 460 female nursing students and 460 nurses in the facility. Data were obtained with a structured questionnaire and a Composite Abuse Scale. The data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics version 20 and represented using frequency table, percentages, and odds ratios. The level of significance is at P-value < 0.05. Results The prevalence of IPV was 48.2% for the nursing student and 58.7% for the nurses. The most common form of IPV among nursing students was Emotional and/or Harassment abuse (27.1%) while it was Severe combined abuse (23.9%) among the nurses. The significant determinants of IPV among nursing students were age [OR = 0.61(95%CI0.41-0.92)] and year of study [OR = 0.67 (95%CI 0.51–0.89)]. Male partner being unemployed was associated with increased odds of a female partner experiencing violence. Nurses’ marital status and being in the low socioeconomic class were associated with increased odds of a nurse witnessing IPV. Conclusion The prevalence of IPV in the studied group is unacceptably high. Efforts are therefore needed to prevent IPV in the study groups. Health care managers in the study area should make policies to support nurses/nursing students who have experienced IPV.

Knowledge, Attitude, and Practice of Intimate Partner Violence and Its Determinants Among Female Nursing Students in Abakaliki, Southeast Nigeria

“…It assess the following: Severe Combined Abuse Factor, Emotional Abuse factor, Physical Abuse factor, and the Harassment factor. The CAS is made up of four subscales: Severe Combined Abuse (SCA; 8 items; possible score 0–40), Physical Abuse (7 items; possible score 0–35), Emotional Abuse (11 items; possible score 0–55), and Harassment (4 items; possible score 0–20)” (Anikwe et al, 2021; Hegarty et al, 2005).…”

“…“Raped me; Used a knife or gun or other weapons; Took my wallet and left me stranded; Tried to rape me; Kept me from medical care; Locked me in the bedroom; Refused to let me work outside the home; Put foreign objects in my vagina” (Anikwe et al, 2021; Hegarty et al, 2005)…”

“…“Told me that I was not good enough; Told me that I was stupid; Did not want me to socialize with my female friends; Told me that I was crazy; Became upset if dinner/housework was not done when they thought it should be; Blamed me for causing their violent behavior; Tried to turn my family, friends and children against me; Told me that no one else would ever want me; Told me that I was ugly; Tried to keep me from seeing or talking to my family; Tried to convince my family, friends and children that I was crazy” (Anikwe et al, 2021; Hegarty et al, 2005).…”

“…Participants who have experienced at least one episode of Physical Abuse, but no other forms of abuse, fell into the third category, Physical Abuse Alone. The final category contains all participants who had experienced Emotional Abuse and/or Harassment, but not any other form of abuse” (Anikwe et al, 2021; Hegarty et al, 2005).…”

“…''Harassed me over the telephone; followed me; Hung around outside my house; Harassed me at work'' (Anikwe et al, 2021;Hegarty et al, 2005).…”