Violence against women as a health care issue.

Violence against women is prevalent and is understood to produce adverse physical and psychological consequences for its victims. Victimized women frequently visit family physicians seeking relief from their distress; yet violence against women has not been identified by medical professionals as a relevant concern. This paper discusses health issues of women who are victims of violence, and encourages family physicians, who are in a position to have a powerful effect on this social problem, to reframe this phenomenon as a pertinent issue.