TITLE:
General Practitioners’ Perspectives about Addressing Family Violence with Men from Refugee and Immigrant Backgrounds in Victoria, Australia
AUTHORS:
Melinda Yunkyo Cho, Gemma McKibbin, Mohajer A. Hameed
KEYWORDS:
General Practitioners, Primary Health Care Setting, Family Violence, Men, Refugee and Immigrant Communities, Semi-Structured Interviews
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Social Sciences,
Vol.9 No.10,
October
29,
2021
ABSTRACT: The purpose of this qualitative article is to
explore medical general practitioners’ perspectives about addressing family
violence with men from refugee and immigrant backgrounds in Victoria,
Australia. Ten general practitioners from across Victoria participated in
semi-structured interviews. Five major themes relating to general
practitioners’ perspectives emerged from the thematic data analysis: 1)
preference to focus on mothers and children who experience family violence and
not men who use family violence; 2) cultural backgrounds acting as a barrier to
address family violence; 3) family violence as linked to resettlement and
mental health concerns; 4) need for a culturally-sensitive and collaborative
approach; and 5) broader healthcare systems reform required. Study limitations,
implications of findings and recommendations for future research are discussed
in terms of broader healthcare systems reform. The authors call for the
development of a culturally sensitive and collaborative care system to address
family violence with men from refugee and immigrant backgrounds in primary care
settings.