Pattern of intimate partner violence disclosure among pregnant women attending ante-natal clinic in Oyo East Local Government, Nigeria

Abstract

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant public health problem. Despite being a phenomenon that occurs globally, few studies have reviewed the issue of intimate partner violence among pregnant women as it relates to disclosure of abuse. This study sets out to determine the prevalence and pattern of disclosure of intimate partner violence among pregnant women attending antenatal clinic in Oyo East Local Government of Oyo State.
 
 Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study among pregnant women aged 18–49 years. A total of 350 pregnant women in the sole secondary health care facility and 3 out of the 18 primary health care facilities randomly selected by balloting were consecutively recruited. A pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire adapted from the WHO Multi-Country Study on Women’s Health and Domestic Violence was used to collect data. Data were analysed with SPSS® version 16.
 
 Results: Of 252 (72.0%) women who had been exposed to violence by their partner in pregnancy, 72 (28.6%) disclosed their IPV experience. The experience was disclosed to relatives, friends and religious leaders. Of the 72 that disclosed their IPV experience, 31 (43.1%) reported for the purpose of seeking redress through religious or local leaders, healthcare professionals and law enforcement agencies.
 
 Conclusion: Intimate partner violence is common among pregnant women, but a culture of silence still persists, making identification of the exposed difficult. These data may encourage healthcare providers to include screening for IPV in the curriculum of the antenatal care.
 
 (Full text of the research articles are available online at www.medpharm.tandfonline.com/ojfp)
 
 S Afr Fam Pract 2017; DOI: 10.1080/20786190.2016.1272245

Are contextual influences and statutory law empathy impetuses to police attitude to domestic violence against women in Lagos State?

“…There is no doubt that the signing of the gender based violence bill into law is an appropriate measure to containing the perpetrators of the act, nevertheless, the expected decline in prevalence rate of domestic violence against women will remain relatively high, for a long time except, and only if the Police and the Judiciary discharge their constitutional duties as stipulated in the 2007 LAGPAVL Consistently, findings emanating from our study validated [3,17,29] who argued that many perpetrators of domestic violence against were neither apprehended nor indicted due to the limited supports coming from the law enforcement agencies. More so, our findings also buttressed [6] who reiterated that it was culturally expected of a married woman in Nigeria to accept whatever came her way in her matrimonial home without complaining. Empirical facts emanating from our study corroborated [30][31][32] who posited in their review that there were no concrete measures in place to assist victims of domestic violence, especially in the developing regions of the world.…”

“…Previous studies validated the absence of functional or shortcomings in domestic violence laws as the major factors influencing domestic violence in many countries, especially those in the developing regions of the world [3,12,17,33,34]. The incidence of domestic violence against women is relatively rampant in many developing countries due to the predominance of the patriarchal family system, where social norms and values relating to family and marriage are strongly upheld [6,21,24]. Unlike previous studies, our study contributes to the existing body of knowledge in a unique way.…”

“…Largely, many women in Nigeria are frequently subjected to different forms of domestic violence such as physical abuse, sexual abuse, economic abuse, emotional abuse, spiritual abuse and neglect [6,7]. In fact, evidence emanating from empirical studies revealed that many women in Nigeria are not only exposed to multiple forms of violence especially in the homes, but are also denied justice when such actions are reported [1,6,7]. In the meantime, [1] stated that the most common form of domestic and gender-based violence is wife battery, and this ranges from beating, verbal abuse, and denial of financial resources, rape, and death.…”

“…Also, national agencies such as the National Centre on Domestic Violence (NCDV), National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) were established by the Federal Government, and saddled with the primary responsibilities to fight against domestic violence in Nigeria. More so, faith-based organisations and non-government organisations likewise play active roles in the fight against domestic violence, most especially at the grassroots or rural settings [6]. Notwithstanding how much effort put in by the CSOs, faith-based organisations, among others, the constitutional power to arrest, interrogate and charge suspects or perpetrators of domestic related violence to the court of law still lies in the hands of the Nigeria Police [19].…”

“…In spite of the weighty role that the law enforcement agencies are assigned with in the prevention of domestic violence, contemporary studies addressing this cruel act across families in Nigeria had rarely explored the extent to which the Police have effectively exercised their constitutional duties in the protection of the people against domestic violence For instance, [6] and [20] were concerned with the patterns and prevalence of domestic violence against pregnant women in Southern Nigeria, rather than the roles played by the Police in bringing the perpetrators of the act to justice. Similarly, [7] had their attention focused on the level of domestic violence that a married woman was subjected to during and after child delivery.…”