Ethical conflicts and limitations of medical care for women victims of gender violence

Abstract

Domestic violence is the most common type of violence against women, resulting in sequelae in the physical, emotional, family, and economic domains, constituting a public health problem. However, the issue is treated negligently by health professionals, which contributes to its invisibility. Based on a review of the literature, the objective of this study was to identify the main difficulties, including ethical conflicts, found by physicians in the approach to patients who are victims of this type of violence. The basic obstacles are grouped in 3 main axes: issues related to the health professional, to the structure of the health system and to the victims of violence. It is concluded that the greatest obstacle comes from the health professionals themselves, and involves factors ranging from inadequate training to the occurrence of moral and ethical conflicts that culminate in blaming and accountability of the victims for the situation of violence in which they were found.