Australian and New Zealand journal of public health
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Aust N Z J Public Health · Jun 2018
An Australian hospital's training program and referral pathway within a multi-disciplinary health-justice partnership addressing family violence.
An innovative health-justice partnership was established to deliver legal assistance to women experiencing family violence who attended an Australian hospital. This paper reports on a multifaceted response to build capacity and willingness of health professionals to identify signs of family violence and engage with referral pathways to on-site legal assistance. ⋯ The program built capacity and willingness of health professionals to identify signs of, and respond to, family violence. Increase in referral rates to legal assistance was not shown. Potential improvements include better data capture and greater availability of legal services. Implications for public health: Strong hospital system supports and reliable recording of family violence referrals need to be in place before introducing such partnerships to other hospitals.