Saudi Family-Medicine Residents' Readiness to Manage Intimate Partner Violence: A Needs Assessment Study

Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) against women has recently gained recognition as a global health priority. Yet, little action has been taken to improve identification of IPV in primarycare settings in Saudi Arabia (SA), indicating a need to train front-line physicians to recognize and treat abused victims. Objective: To assess the knowledge, attitudes, and perceptions of IPV among a sample of Saudi family medicine (SFM) residents and use this data to develop and integrate an IPV curriculum into the SFM residency curriculum. Methods: The Physician Readiness to Manage Intimate Partner Violence Survey (PREMIS) was modified for cultural sensitivity and uploaded to a web-based survey management provider. Results: Thirty residents participated in the survey yielding a response rate of 52%. None reported postgraduate training in IPV. Respondents scored low in perceived perpetration (2.59/7) and perceived knowledge to manage IPV (average score of 2.26/7). The mean actual knowledge score for residents was 18.1/38 (SD = 6.7). Conclusion: Residents did not perceive themselves as either knowledgeable or well-prepared to discuss IPV with patients. These results signify a lack of education and exposure to IPV education in SA and indicate the need to train physicians on how to appropriately respond to abused victims.