Educating university allied health students about gender-based violence: Report of a pilot study

Frances Doran; Paul Orrock

doi:10.11157/fohpe.v22i3.440

Authors

Frances Doran Southern Cross Universtiy http://orcid.org/0000-0001-7587-0201
Paul Orrock Southern Cross University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11157/fohpe.v22i3.440

Keywords:

professional education, health professional curricula, gender-based violence, sexual harassment, students, survey

Abstract

Introduction: Sexual harassment, bullying and discrimination occur across a range of healthcare settings, with frequent complaints made to health professional registration boards of Australia. Health professional education provides an ideal opportunity to ensure students understand the nature of gender-based violence (GBV) and how to prevent and address such behavior. However, there has been minimal health professional curricula that incorporates an integrated focus on gender. The aim of this study was to increase awareness and knowledge of pre-registration health students of the context of GBV and for participants to learn bystander approaches to effectively intervene to reduce violence.

Methods: A violence prevention workshop incorporating a bystander approach was developed as a key component of the curriculum for a single discipline cohort of health students. Participants completed a survey pre and post workshop, where they provided responses, on a 5-point Likert scale, to statements exploring attitudes, knowledge and behaviours in relation to behaviours that constitute GBV. Within-subject pre- and post-intervention statistical analysis was completed.

Results: The results demonstrated several significant positive changes to knowledge and attitude of the participants in relation to GBV.

Conclusions: The findings of the project can inform the development of integrated gender-focused education as a core competency for preparing health professional students across a range of disciplines in clinical health and public health curricula.

Author Biographies

Frances Doran, Southern Cross Universtiy

Dr Frances Doran is a Senior Lecturer at the School of Health and Human Sciences, Southern Cross University. An experienced Academic who has taught across a range of health disciplines. Her research interests relate to reducing gender based vilence, cultural safety and health promotion.

Paul Orrock, Southern Cross University

AUL J ORROCK PhD MAppSc (Res) GradCertHEd DO is an osteopathic clinician, academic and researcher. He has completed funded projects on the health workforce for Osteopathy Australia and educational projects on the development and assessment of clinical reasoning. His masters was a biomechanical study on gait, and the doctoral research was a mixed methods exploration of the osteopathic profession and the development of a pragmatic clinical trial method that reflects whole practice. Paul has published and presented his clinical and educational research nationally and internationally. He is interested in developing models of complex interventions and testing their effectiveness in clinical trials.

References

Alegría-Flores, K., Raker, K., Pleasants, R. K., Weaver, M. A., & Weinberger, M. (2017). Preventing interpersonal violence on college campuses. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 32(7), 1103–1126. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260515587666

Australian's National Research Organisation for Women's Safety (ANROWS). (2018). National Community Attitudes Towards Violence Against Women Survey (NCAS). https://www.anrows.org.au/research-program/ncas/

Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency (AHRPA). (2019). National boards. https://www.ahpra.gov.au/National-Boards.aspx

Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC). (2020). Respect@work: Sexual harassment national inquiry report. https://humanrights.gov.au/our-work/sex-discrimination/publications/respectwork-sexual-harassment-national-inquiry-report-2020

Bismark, M. M., Studdert, D. M., Morton, K., Paterson, R., Spittal, M. J., & Taouk, Y. (2020). Sexual misconduct by health professionals in Australia, 2011–2016: A retrospective analysis of notifications to health regulators. Medical Journal of Australia, 213(5), 218–224. https://doi.org/10.5694/mja2.50706

Casey, E. A., Allen, C. T., Tolman, R. M., Carlson, J. M., & Leek, C. (2019). Walking the walk or just talk? A global examination of men’s intentions to take violence preventative action. Journal of Aggression, Maltreatment & Trauma, 28(9), 1038–1056. https://doi.org/10.1080/10926771.2018.1446480

Fenton, R., & Jones, C. (2017). An exploratory study on the beliefs about gender-based violence held by incoming undergraduates in England. Journal of Gender-Based Violence, 1(2), 147–167. https://doi.org/10.1332/239868017X15090095609822

Fileborn, B., Loney-Howes, R., & Hindes, S. (2019, March 8). #MeToo has changed the media landscape, but in Australia there is still much to be done. The Conversation. http:/theconversation.com/metoo-has-changed-the-media-landscape-but-in-australia-there-is-still-much-to-be-done-111612

Flood, M. (2019). Engaging men and boys in violence prevention (pp. 11–38). Palgrave Macmillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-137-44208-6_2

Glisczinski, D. (2007). Transformative higher education: A meaningful degree of understanding. Journal of Transformative Education, 5(4), 317–328. https://doi.org/10.1177/1541344607312838

Global Institute for Women's Leadership. (2020). International Women’s Day. https://www.kcl.ac.uk/giwl/assets/international-womens-day-2020.pdf

Hennelly, S., Hussain, S., Hale, T., Cadle, M., Brooke, J., & Davies, E. ( 2019). University student attitudes to prosocial bystander behaviours. Health Education, 119(5/6), 408–424. https://doi.org/10.1108/HE-05-2019-0023

Hutchinson, M., & Doran, F. (2017). Psychometric testing of inventory of beliefs and attitudes on domestic violence. Nurse Researcher, 25(1), 30–36. https://doi.org/10.7748/nr.2017.e1469

Jagsi, R. (2018). Sexual harassment in medicine: #MeToo. New England Journal of Medicine, 378(3), 209–211. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMp1715962

Kabat-Farr, D., & Crumley, E. (2019). Sexual harassment in healthcare: A psychological perspective. The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 24(1), Manuscript 4. https://doi.org/10.3912/OJIN.Vol24No01Man04

Katz, J. (2018). Bystander training as leadership training: Notes on the origins, philosophy, and pedagogy of the mentors in violence prevention model. Violence Against Women, 24(15), 1755–1776. https://doi.org/10.1177/1077801217753322

Lovi, R., Hurley, J., & Hutchinson, M. (2018). Qualitative findings from an Australian study of inter-partner violence content within undergraduate health curriculum. Nurse Education Today, 70, 1–7. https:/doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2018.07.012

Medical Board of Australia and AHPRA. (2020). Medical training survey. https://www.medicaltrainingsurvey.gov.au/Results/Reports-and-results

McMahon, S., & Banyard, V. L. (2012). When can I help? A conceptual framework for the prevention of sexual violence through bystander intervention. Trauma Violence Abuse, 13(1), 3–14. https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838011426015

McMahon, S., Palmer, J., & Banyard, V. (2017). Measuring bystander behavior in the context of sexual violence prevention: Lessons learned and new directions. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 32(16), 2396–2418. https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260515591979

Our Watch. (2020). National primary prevention report. https://media-cdn.ourwatch.org.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2021/01/29140249/Our-Watch-National-primary-prevention-report-AA.pdf

Siller, H., Komlenac, N., Fink, H., Perkhofer, S., & Hochleitner, M. (2018). Promoting gender in medical and allied health professions education: Influence on students' gender awareness. Health Care for Women International, 39(9), 1056–1072. https://doi.org/10.1080/07399332.2017.1395881

Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission. (2020). Guideline: Preventing and responding to workplace sexual harassmen—Complying with the Equal Opportunity Act 2010. https://www.humanrights.vic.gov.au/resources/sexual-harassment-guideline/

Webster, K., Diemer, K., Honey, N., Mannix, S., Mickle, J., & Ward, A. (2018). Australians’ attitudes to violence against women and gender equality: Findings from the 2017 National Community Attitudes Towards Violence Against Women Survey (NCAS) research report. https://ncas.anrows.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/NCAS-report-2018.pdf

Wells, L., & Fotheringham, S. (2021). A global review of violence prevention plans: Where are the men and boys? International Social Work. https://doi.org/10.1177/0020872820963430

Westbrook, J., Sunderland, N., Atkinson, V., Jones, C., & Braithwaite, J. (2018). Endemic unprofessional behaviour in health care: The mandate for a change in approach. Medical Journal of Australia, 209(9), 380–381. https://doi.org/10.5694/mja17.01261

World Health Organisation (WHO). (2007). Integrating gender into the curricula for health professionals: Meeting report. https://www.who.int/gender/documents/GWH_curricula_web2.pdf

Yang, H.-C. (2020). What should be taught and what is taught: Integrating gender into medical and health professions education for medical and nursing students. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(18), 6555. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph17186555