New domestic violence health care standards proposed under recent Ohio bill – Ideastream

Report on Ohio House Bill 566: The Break the Silence Act

Introduction: Legislative Action to Combat Intimate Partner Violence

A legislative proposal, House Bill 566, has been introduced in Ohio to establish new standards of care for healthcare professionals treating patients suspected of experiencing intimate partner violence. Titled the “Break the Silence Act,” the bipartisan bill aims to create a safer and more supportive healthcare environment for victims, thereby strengthening institutional responses to a critical public health issue.

Alignment with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

The proposed legislation directly supports the objectives of SDG 3 by seeking to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all. Its contributions include:

• Enhancing the capacity of healthcare systems to respond effectively to intimate partner violence, a significant public health crisis.
• Promoting the mental and physical well-being of individuals by mandating safe and confidential medical consultations.
• Establishing protocols that facilitate early intervention and the prevention of further harm, contributing to overall community health.

SDG 5: Gender Equality

HB 566 is a crucial measure for advancing SDG 5, which aims to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. The bill addresses this goal by:

• Targeting intimate partner violence, a pervasive form of gender-based violence.
• Contributing directly to the elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls (Target 5.2), as data indicates women are the primary victims.
• Empowering victims to seek and receive help in a secure setting, free from the immediate influence of an abuser.

SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

The bill reinforces the principles of SDG 16, which promotes peaceful and inclusive societies, provides access to justice, and builds effective institutions. It achieves this by:

• Aiming to significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates (Target 16.1), in response to a documented surge in domestic violence fatalities.
• Strengthening public institutions, specifically healthcare facilities, to provide a more robust and standardized response to violence.
• Fostering access to justice for victims by creating an official record of potential abuse, which can serve as a catalyst for legal and social intervention.

Key Provisions of House Bill 566

The legislation would create new mandatory standards of care for healthcare practitioners when domestic violence is suspected. These standards include:

1. Conducting private interviews with the patient to create a safe space for disclosure.
2. Separately interviewing any family or household members present with the patient.
3. Systematically documenting possible abuse-related injuries in the patient’s official medical records.

Supporting Data and Rationale

Statistical Imperative

The urgency for this legislation is underscored by the most recent annual fatality report from the Ohio Domestic Violence Network (ODVN), which found:

• A 37% year-over-year increase in domestic violence fatalities in Ohio.
• While more men (82) than women (75) died, the majority of victims were women and the majority of perpetrators were men.
• Domestic violence deaths impacted 36 of Ohio’s 88 counties, with the highest numbers recorded in Franklin and Cuyahoga Counties.

Stakeholder Perspectives

• Survivor Breaunna Nooks, who originated the bill’s concept, highlighted the necessity of private consultations, recounting personal experiences where her abuser was present during medical examinations.
• City of Columbus Attorney Zach Klein stated that a “health care worker may be the victim’s first line of defense and is a catalyst to change their lives for the better.”
• The Ohio Domestic Violence Network (ODVN) has formally endorsed the bill, providing the critical data that demonstrates its necessity.

Conclusion and Next Steps

House Bill 566, introduced by Representatives Dontavius Jarrells and Josh Williams, is currently awaiting committee assignment. Its passage would represent a significant advancement in Ohio’s commitment to public health, gender equality, and institutional strength, directly aligning with the core objectives of the Sustainable Development Goals.

Analysis of Sustainable Development Goals in the Article

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

The article discusses Ohio’s proposed House Bill 566, the “Break the Silence Act,” which aims to establish new standards for healthcare professionals in identifying and responding to intimate partner violence. This initiative directly connects to several Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) focused on health, gender equality, and justice.

• SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

  The core of the article is about the role of the healthcare system in addressing a public health crisis. Domestic violence has severe physical and mental health consequences. The bill mandates healthcare practitioners to conduct private interviews and document injuries, which are measures to improve the health and well-being of victims.

• SDG 5: Gender Equality

  Intimate partner violence is a significant form of gender-based violence. The article notes that while more men died in the reported year, “most victims were women, and most attackers were men.” By creating a system to better protect victims, the bill aims to eliminate violence against women, a key component of achieving gender equality.

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

  The article highlights a legislative effort (House Bill 566) to create stronger institutional responses to violence. It addresses the need for justice and safety, as described by Columbus Attorney Zach Klein, who stated, “A health care worker may be the victim’s first line of defense.” The bill represents an effort to reduce violence and related deaths through a structured, institutional process.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

Based on the issues and solutions presented in the article, several specific SDG targets can be identified:

1. Under SDG 3: Good Health and Well-being

   • Target 3.4: Reduce by one-third premature mortality from non-communicable diseases through prevention and treatment and promote mental health and well-being. The article highlights a “37% increase” in domestic violence deaths, which constitutes premature mortality. The bill’s intervention protocols are a form of prevention and treatment aimed at saving lives and addressing the severe mental and physical trauma associated with abuse.

2. Under SDG 5: Gender Equality

   • Target 5.2: Eliminate all forms of violence against all women and girls in the public and private spheres. The entire focus of the “Break the Silence Act” is to create a mechanism to identify and support victims of intimate partner violence, a primary form of violence against women occurring in the private sphere. Breaunna Nooks’s testimony about her abuser being present at doctor’s appointments exemplifies the private nature of this violence.

3. Under SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

   • Target 16.1: Significantly reduce all forms of violence and related death rates everywhere. The article’s central motivation is the dramatic surge in domestic violence deaths in Ohio. The bill is a direct attempt to reduce this specific form of violence and its lethal outcomes.
   • Target 16.2: End abuse, exploitation, trafficking and all forms of violence against and torture of children. While the article focuses on intimate partner violence, the bill’s requirement to interview “any family or household member” could help identify and protect children who are often witnesses or victims in households where domestic violence occurs.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

Yes, the article mentions and implies several indicators that can be used to measure progress:

• Indicator for Targets 5.2 and 16.1:

  The article explicitly refers to the “most recent annual fatality report by ODVN [Ohio Domestic Violence Network],” which tracks domestic violence deaths. This report provides a direct quantitative indicator:

  • Number of domestic violence-related deaths per year. The article cites a “37% increase year-over-year” and specific figures (82 men and 75 women died), demonstrating that this data is already being collected and can be used to measure the bill’s effectiveness in reducing violence and related death rates. This aligns with official indicators like 16.1.1 (Number of victims of intentional homicide per 100,000 population).

• Indicator for SDG 3:

  The bill itself creates a new potential indicator by mandating specific actions within the healthcare system:

  • Number of documented cases of possible abuse-related injuries in medical records. The article states that a new standard of care would be to “document possible abuse-related injuries to add to the patient’s medical records.” Tracking the frequency and outcomes of these documented cases would serve as an indicator of the healthcare system’s improved capacity to identify and respond to domestic violence, contributing to better health outcomes.

4. Summary Table of SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Source: ideastream.org