Existence of staff barriers to partner violence screening and screening practices in military prenatal settings

To identify, from a provider's perspective, the existence of staff barriers and the frequency of partner violence screening.

Quantitative descriptive design.

Data were collected at two United States Army Community Hospitals.

Department of Defense physicians and family nurse practitioners that provide prenatal care completed a 26-item questionnaire.

Military health care providers are aware of partner violence screening barriers, with the biggest perceived barriers being lack of time (80%) and lack of education (72%). Screening practices exceeded research expectation, with 93% of the providers performing partner violence screening. Seventy-four percent of participants had received partner violence education and training, with 12% having received greater than 5 hours of training.

Perceived barriers to partner violence screening do exist in military prenatal settings but do not significantly affect screening practices. Most providers are screening prenatal patients for partner violence and are aware of resources available to assist victims of partner violence.