Her husband had battered her, she said after Schaefer questioned her. Schaefer referred her client to a domestic violence shelter where she got appropriate counseling. The statistics are telling. Two to four million women in the U.S. are abused by intimate partners annually, according to the Department of Justice. More than one million children are victims of substantial abuse or neglect, and more than 1200 children die each year as a result of such abuse, according to a study published in the January-February issue of Journal of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgery.
Abuse is a major public health issue, the second most common cause of death among young children.
Professional medical societies have begun to advocate routine screening of all patients for domestic violence, and some have even published guidelines on how to do it. As well as the American Medical Association, the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the American Physical Therapy Association have published statements or established guidelines for treating victims of domestic violence. At this year's annual meeting, the AAOS sponsored an educational booth and a symposium to educate members about domestic abuse. Health practitioners who treat orthopedic and musculoskeletal injuries are in a unique position to help domestic violence victims, according to experts. Soft tissue bruising and burns are the most common signs of physical abuse in children, followed by fractures, according to a study published in the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery in August 1995.