Women who suffer Domestic violence they often justify beatings through completely made-up accidents at home, perhaps because they ignore the repercussions that this type of violence has a negative impact on the cognitive development of their children. To declare it is Bullock, professor emeritus at the University of Missouri Sinclair School of Nursing, who studied the phenomenon.
There Research was published in the scientific journal Maternal Child Health Journal.
Domestic violence: what are the repercussions on children?
Bullock, after visiting a pregnant woman with obvious signs of domestic violence, was perplexed: “Something didn’t seem right, but I didn’t know what to say at the time. I moved on to the next evaluation question. We stopped her labor and sent her home, but I bet my last dollar that I sent her back to an abusive relationship, and that sparked my interest in helping other nurses care for battered women. What we didn’t know at the time was the impact the violence had on the child ”.
Bullock contributed to the implementation of the DOVE program (Perinatal home care enhanced by domestic violence) in rural Missouri, which enhanced safety planning and reduced domestic violence for hundreds of abused pregnant women. After learning from home medical visits that many of the abused women had up to nine different partners during and after pregnancy, Bullock conducted a study to examine the impact of multiple father figures on newborn cognitive development.
After proposing some neurodevelopmental tests during home visits three, six and 12 months after birth, the research found that infants of women who had only one male abusive partner had worse cognitive outcomes than infants of women. with multiple partners, only some of which are abusive.
“Findings highlight the variety of ways multiple father figures may have helped mom support her baby, whether it provided food, shelter, childcare or financial benefits.“Explained Bullock. “For single-partner women who have abused them, the child’s father, the father may not have provided any physical or financial support or played an active role in the child’s life. It can be difficult for busy single moms struggling to make ends meet, and looking for a partner to provide the toys and stimulation their babies need to reach crucial developmental milestones. “
Bullock added that children from families with domestic violence often continue to perform worse at school due to neurodevelopmental delays and a higher risk for a range of health problems, including gastrointestinal upset, problems with eating and sleeping, as well as stress and disease.
“When nurses visit homes to check on pregnant women and their developing babies, we want them to be trained to recognize the warning signs of potential partner violence,” Bullock said. “I still think back to 1983, when I sent that lady home in a terrible situation, and I decided to make sure I can help today’s nurses not make the same mistake I did. “
Domestic abuse , also called “Domestic violence“Or” intimate partner violence “, can be defined as a role model in any relationship that is used to gain or maintain power and control over an intimate partner. Abuse manifests itself in physical, sexual, emotional, economic, or psychological actions or threats of actions that affect another person. This includes any behavior that scares, intimidates, terrifies, manipulates, hurts, humiliates, blames, hurts or hurts someone.
Domestic abuse can happen to anyone of any race, age, sexual orientation, religion or gender. It can occur within a range of relationships including married couples, living together, or dating. Domestic violence affects people from all socioeconomic backgrounds and educational levels.
“Children Exposed to Intimate Partner Violence: Impact of Multiple Father Figures”Was recently published in the Maternal Child Health Journal. Funding for the study was provided by the National Institutes of Nursing Research. The study involved collaborators from Johns Hopkins University and the University of Virginia.