Heal Victims of Violence

DESCRIPTION (provided by investigator): The purpose of the Heal Victims of Violence Helping Providers Care for Women Patients who are Victims of Violence project is to develop a CD-ROM-based resource for healthcare providers to address the comprehensive r ealm of safety issues and healthcare needs resulting from violence against women (VAW). Healthcare providers can make a significant difference in the lives and health of women who are victims of violence by screening routinely for violence, documenting v iolence in patient records, collecting and safeguarding evidence, and providing medical care, advice, safety planning, and referrals. This project will serve as a resource for providers to complete these services and others for their victimized patients. Using the input of target women patients and healthcare providers individuals of diverse races, ages, cultures, educational levels, and socioeconomic backgrounds, the CD-ROM is expected to appropriately assist the target population care for women vi ctims of violence by serving as an encyclopedia of information. To ensure relevance to individual provider's clinical lives, the CD-ROM will consist of several modules. These modules, when navigated and completed, will provide healthcare providers with skills, resources, and tools with which to care comprehensively for their female patients who have been victimized by violence. Inclusion of advanced searching capabilities will further ensure product usefulness, as providers can refer to use only the se ctions needed or pertinent to their work or individual cases. Hyperlinks to additional information on the CD-ROM, as well as links to the World Wide Web, will allow users to locate the most needed and up-to-date resources possible.