CHILDREN EXPOSED TO DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AT HOME 7

The public health intervention measures on the impacts of domestic violence target the elucidation of the prevalence levels, predisposing conditions and protective factors. Practitioners need to identify the children at increased risk to witness domestic conflicts and formulate appropriate community-based approaches to control the problems. Children at increased risk of exposure to domestic violence include those from low-income backgrounds, broken homes, and places notorious with gangs, crimes and other antisocial habits. Health promotion intervention models should be geared towards encouraging the victims to improve their health through participation in programs like stress management, leading to modification of lifestyle and enhancing their well being (Adamson & Thompson, 1998). Practitioners can also design strategies to identify violence, control harm arising from violence or promote desirable functional abilities in the event of harm.

The intervention measures can occur at primary, secondary and tertiary levels. In primary intervention, the focus is on instituting mechanisms to reduce exposure through implementation of health enhancement programs to children at risk so as to reduce their involvement in violence and safeguard them from harm. These interventions measures may be both active and passive, whereby active measures need moderation of certain aspects on the side of the children through anticipatory counseling, conflict management programs and positive self-image development (Wolfe et al., 1995). Passive primary interventions employ policies, legislative measures and environmental modification. In secondary intervention, the focus is on early identification of the problem through screening of children and communities for high levels of likely exposure to violence in order to design measures that will help reduce the outcomes. Secondary measures, therefore, include strategies implemented when violence exists or is thought to be occurring. Other secondary intervention measures include anti-violence activities and crisis management.

Tertiary interventions focus on the reduction of chronic impacts through rehabilitation programs and control of the frequency of exposure by guidance, minimization of stress and modification of high risk environments (Wolfe et al., 1995).

Conclusion

A lot of evidence is available to show that children respond to domestic violence in detrimental ways, often leaving them helpless and immobilized. The exposure impairs with their cognitive, social and affective mechanisms that are manifested differently depending on age, gender and coping abilities of the child among other factors. The outcomes such as aggression, withdrawal and emotional disturbances retard their development, hence the need to address the consequences. Public health interventions measures must be taken to safeguard children from the impacts of domestic violence. These measures should be at all levels i.e. primary, secondary and tertiary levels of exposure.