Domestic abuse charity Advance is working with IRISi and London’s Violence Reduction Unit to launch a new service at the Sexual Health Clinic at St Mary’s Hospital Paddington, part of Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust.
The Advance team will be leading the delivery of ADViSE (Assessing for Domestic Violence and Abuse in Sexual Health Environments) a programme developed by IRISi. It supports clinicians to identify patients affected by domestic abuse and sexual violence, and gives them a simple referral pathway to specialist services. Commissioned by the Violence Reduction Unit, it will be running in London for the first time in two areas.
Dr Ali Mears, Consultant in Sexual Health at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, said:
Ramisha, Advance Senior Service Manager for Health, said: “Our partnership with Imperial Trust and the Sexual Health Department at St. Mary’s builds on our collaboration to support survivors of domestic abuse pre and during the pandemic. It ensures survivors of domestic abuse and sexual violence get increased support in familiar settings. Advance’s dedicated Advocate Educator will provide guidance and support to both survivors and healthcare professionals at the hospital, ensuring survivors receive the care they need to be safe and professionals are equipped with the necessary tools to respond to domestic and/or sexual abuse disclosures, needs and risk.”
Lib Peck, Director of London’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU), said:
Charlotte Chappell, ADViSE Lead and Senior Regional Manager at IRISi, said: “The launch of ADViSE means more survivors will have access to vital support. It also shows the importance of commitment from public investors to establish a robust and well-integrated model to address the needs of domestic abuse and sexual violence survivors in a holistic and sustainable way.”
Domestic abuse is often connected to sexual health and gynaecological problems. It has links to an increase in sexually transmitted infections, including HIV, and unintended pregnancy.
The scale of the issue:
- 1 in 4 women in the UK will experience domestic abuse.
- 1.9 million women are victims of domestic abuse per year in England and Wales, and
- 2 women are killed per week in England and Wales.
- 1 in 5 children in the UK have lived with an adult perpetrating domestic violence.
- 9 out of 10 victims reported improvements in safety following intervention by a hospital Independent Domestic Violence Advisor (IDVA) according to a Safer Lives report.
- A Galop report found 6 in 10 (61%) LGBT+ survivors did not seek support from services following abuse by a family member or a partner/ex-partner.
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About Advance
- Advance’s vision is a world in which women and children lead safe, equal, violence-free lives so that they can flourish and actively contribute to society. The charity works with women who experience domestic abuse to be safe and take control of their lives, and women who have committed crime or are at risk of offending to break the cycle.
- As well as providing direct support, Advance works with statutory services, government agencies and other women’s charities to ensure a holistic approach to the issues these women face.
- Advance works in health care settings, supporting general practitioners (GPs) and the wider healthcare team to better understand how to identify domestic abuse, how to ask about it, improve understanding of safeguarding and how to refer women into domestic abuse services like Advance. Learn more about our Whole Health Approach
- Women must be referred to Advance, via statutory services or the charity’s self-referral scheme. For more information about who Advance is able to support, please visit Get Help
- For facts and statistics about domestic abuse and women in the criminal justice system, as well as Advance’s work, please visit Our Impact
