Leeds GP uses routine question to help domestic abuse victims
The idea could now be rolled out across the city
A Garforth GP says doctors can help save the lives of domestic abuse victims by asking patients one simple question.
“It started off as a three month pilot,” says Dr Nighat Sultan.
“And it was simply asking at the end of a consultation: ‘have you ever experienced any domestic abuse or violence?’”
Dr Sultan started routinely asking her female patients about domestic abuse two years ago, and says nearly one in five answered ‘yes’.
She told Radio Aire she was shocked by the scale of the issue:
“It’s a completely hidden problem and it’s something that, as doctors, we’ve not been trained to ask about.
“If one surgery can uncover all this, if every surgery started to do this you can imagine it would uncover the real extent of the problem.”
Following Dr Sultan’s findings, a conference is taking place in Leeds today to look at introducing the idea across the city.
It will be attended by survivors of domestic violence, as well as representatives from the NHS and other groups.
“It’s a simple question, it takes a few seconds to ask," says Dr Sultan.
"The idea is prevention and early intervention, and lots and lots of studies have shown that a simple intervention like this in the community can make a massive impact on picking up on problems much earlier, and ending the abuse earlier.
“The GP surgery is safe and confidential. We are ideally placed for patients to come in here and be able to speak. And if they’re asked the question, they’re given an opportunity to talk and that’s what I’ve found. They may not tell me this time, but the next time I see them or the time after, they will tell me.
“Patients have said ‘if it wasn’t for you, I would still be in that relationship’.