Marital Violence affecting female nurses and its physical and mental health consequences.

THE AIM

To investigate the relationship between marital violence and Jordanian nurses' physical and mental health.

BACKGROUND

Despite the negative impact of marital violence on female nurses' health, few studies have investigated its physical and mental aspects.

METHOD

A descriptive correlational design was used to investigate the relationship between marital violence and the physical and mental health of female Jordanian nurses. One hundred ninety-eight female Jordanian nurses from five governmental hospitals were recruited. The Women Abuse Screening Test was used to measure forms of violence, and the SF-36 V2 instrument was used to examine physical and mental health. The prevalence of violence was calculated, and the linear relationship between violence and physical and mental health was measured using Pearson correlation.

RESULTS

Female nurses reported a high percentage of different forms of violence. The study results revealed a negative relationship between violence and mental health and physical health.

CONCLUSION

Jordanian female nurses suffered hazardous physical and mental health consequences of violence that adversely affect their entire life.

IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING POLICY AND EDUCATION

Nursing educators should establish clear guidelines and training policies on marital violence for nurses through creation of an effective and cooperative networking and resources. Also, nursing/health policymakers should create responsive healthcare environment through raising the awareness on marital violence against nurses and providing counselling services for emergency and concurrent cases.