The Australian journal of advanced nursing : a quarterly publication of the Royal Australian Nursing Federation
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Despite the increasing awareness of the important role that Accident and Emergency (A&E) personnel have in the diagnosis and management of domestic violence victims, there is limited knowledge about the nurses' or doctors' knowledge of or attitudes to domestic violence in Australian health care settings. In addition nursing and medical staff still receive very little training in working with domestic violence victims. ⋯ Despite this they do not have all the skills necessary to deal effectively with the problem or to be able to access local resources for assistance. Education programs should focus on direct questioning techniques, and recognition of risk factors and protocols to provide guidelines for police involvement.
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The aim of this study was to uncover factors that influenced the attitudes of doctors' and nurses' towards psychiatric patients in the intensive care setting. In-depth interviews were undertaken with experienced intensive care nurses and doctors, which were subsequently analysed via an analytic induction method. ⋯ Recommendations arising from this study are that communication channels between psychiatric units and intensive care units should be developed as a matter of priority. Furthermore, educational programs for intensive care doctors and nurses are required in order to enhance psychiatric patient care.