NAVIGATING THE NEW REALITY: A CHARACTERIZATION OF A DOMESTIC VIOLENCE TRAINING PROGRAM FOR HEALTHCARE WORKERS - BEFORE AND AFTER THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Abstract

Abstract Objectives The face is the most frequent target in physical domestic violence (DV). It is important that dental practitioners/surgeon and their teams identify such causes of injury so that patients can be supported by referral to the appropriate agency. Without training, we know that healthcare providers do not effectively identify domestic violence in presenting patients. The objective is to develop principles of a DV training package for dental practitioners/surgeons. Materials and Methods: A systematic review to understand the characteristics of DV educational intervention programs. An electronic search was performed in the PubMed, Scopus, Embase, Eric and Cochrane databases for relevant publications in the English language from January 2020 to August 2023. Any structured training strategy, including experience-based or didactic training, workshops, and structured or semi-structured questionnaires, provided in-person or virtually, with the primary objective of enhancing the capability to recognise and respond to DV against women aged 18 and older, were included. Results A comprehensive literature search yielded 1833 articles from an electronic database and six studies from a manual search. After removing duplicates, 1800 records remained. After reviewing the title and abstract, one thousand seven hundred seven records were eliminated. In total, 93 articles qualified for full-text screening. Eventually, 17 studies published from 2020 to 2023 that met the inclusion criteria were reviewed. ii Navigating the New Reality: A Characterization of a Domestic Violence Training Program for Healthcare Workers - Before and After the COVID-19 Pandemic Conclusion Several recommendations can be made to advance research and practice related to DV training for surgeons. These are 1. Tailored Training Programs: Should incorporate strategies for identifying DV within the context of healthcare services during such emergencies; 2. Online and Telemedicine Training: Ensure surgeons use these technologies effectively; 3. Long-Term Impact Assessment: Encourage future research to include long-term assessments of the effectiveness of training programs; 4. Diversity and Inclusion: Ensure it is inclusive and reaches a diverse audience; 5. Evidence- Based Practices: Foster research to identify evidence-based practices for DV training; 6. Interdisciplinary Collaboration: Encourage collaboration between healthcare providers, researchers, policymakers, and community organisations; 7. Continuous Adaptation: Recognise that healthcare landscapes are continually evolving; 8. Advocacy and Awareness: Advocate for increased awareness within healthcare systems and institutions; 9. International Cooperation: Foster international cooperation and knowledge sharing; 10. Evaluation and Quality Assurance: Implement robust evaluation mechanisms and quality assurance processes