Pregnant women with unexplained bruising a 'red flag' for healthcare workers

Women's Aid data suggests that one in eight women in Ireland are abused during pregnancy. Picture: iStock

Unexplained bruising on a pregnant woman is one of the ‘red flags’ healthcare workers are urged to watch out for under new guidelines for supporting women in abusive relationships.

A shocking one in eight pregnant women are estimated to suffer from domestic violence in Ireland, according to Women’s Aid.

These soon-to-be-published guidelines are part of measures involving maternity care across hospitals and community services as well as projects running with Women’s Aid.

Cork University Maternity Hospital social work team leader Ann-Marie McCarthy said other red flags can include a woman’s partner answering all the questions during pregnancy appointments.

This can extend to claiming the woman does not speak English, which may or may not be the case in reality.

Women missing many appointments can also be a sign that things are not right at home.

“It’s about knowing the signs and impacts,” said Ms McCarthy.

“Also a focus should be put on privacy and safety, so minding her in that space in terms of recognising that this is actually a really big thing for somebody to disclose.”

She presented on the new guidelines at the All-Ireland Maternity and Midwifery Festival this week, along with midwife Jeannine Webster.

Ms McCarthy advised asking direct questions can help women explain what is happening. She said: 

In our guidelines, we talk about very specific questions — so, ‘do you feel safe in your relationship’. 

“If it’s in the emergency department, for example, if somebody presents with bruising, it’s asking the question, ‘did somebody actually do that to you’.”

Other children may also be impacted, she said.

“It’s important to be mindful that not only are you dealing with a woman, you are also dealing with the unborn baby and what the risks are to that unborn baby,” she said.

Ms Webster added: “Statistically, we know one in eight women are abused in pregnancy, that’s a Women’s Aid figure. So we ask everybody about domestic violence, and you are opening up the conversation.”

Digital health records used in some maternity hospitals include mandatory questions on this sensitive area, including ‘do you feel safe in your current relationship?’.

The guidelines recommend introducing these electronic records to all maternity units in order to ensure consistency in screening for domestic violence in pregnancy.

They recommend mandatory antenatal screening for domestic violence for all women attending public care, semi-private, private. and all community settings.

• Women’s Aid 24-hour helpline: 1800 341900