Domestic Violence Awareness Month
October 2006
October is Domestic Violence Awareness Month and October 11 is designated as Health Cares About Domestic Violence Day. Throughout Alaska and the nation, health care providers, domestic violence advocates, researchers, policy makers, and family violence survivors are working to raise awareness and develop a more coordinated response to domestic violence in the health care setting. Early identification and referral of adults and children in violent households can prevent many of the long-term health complications of abuse and interrupt the cycle of violence that all too many Alaskan families experience. The Alaska Family Violence Prevention Project (AFVPP) provided training this month on the effects of violence on child and brain development and a presentation on “Assessment for Lifetime Exposure To Violence as a Pathway to Prevention.”
Alaska ranks first in the nation for the per capita rate of women murdered by men according to a report that was recently released by the Violence Policy Center. In a statewide survey conducted in September, 2006 by the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault (ANDVSA), three-quarters (74.7%) of Alaskans said that they had experienced or knew someone who had experienced domestic violence or sexual assault. The tragedy of domestic violence is compounded by the thousands of Alaskan children who are exposed to violence in their homes. Childhood exposure to violence has been shown to negatively impact children’s brain development and school performance. Children exposed to domestic violence suffer from many of the same chronic health problems that have been well documented in victimized adults including digestive problems, sleep disorders, depression, and posttraumatic stress disorder. Children who are exposed to domestic violence are more prone to be violent in school and the community. Peggy Brown, Executive Director of ANDVSA, stated that “domestic and sexual violence threatens our neighbors, our friends, our families and our future.”
For more information, educational/training resources on domestic violence and childhood exposure to violence, please contact: Linda Chamberlain or Jo Gottschalk.
Alaska Family Violence Prevention Project (AFVPP)
Division of Public Health
Section of Injury Prevention & EMS
Phone: 907-269-3454
Fax: 907-269-2041
Email: Jo_Gottschalk@health.state.ak.us
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