Document Type

Report

Publication Date

2009

Abstract

Sexual violence (SV) is a serious societal problem that creates significant challenges to local communities in their attempt to create an overall plan for meeting the medical, emotional, physical safety, and legal needs of SV survivors. It is important to understand the existing links between the health sector and police as a basis for addressing the complexities surrounding SV. Appropriate management of SV survivors requires a standardized clinical evaluation, an effective interface with law enforcement for the handling of forensic evidence, and coordination of the continuum of care. From the public health perspective, the issues to be addressed revolve around accessibility of medical services and consistency in quality of care. Public health concerns are also guided by the legal procedures to be observed in the collection of medico-legal evidence by health care providers from the survivor to be used in prosecution of the sexual offenders within the criminal justice system, hence the need for countries to develop standardized mechanisms through which appropriate support will be delivered to survivors of SV from a medical and legal dimension. This report presents the findings of an operations research study conducted in Nyanza and Eastern Province, Kenya, in 2007/8.

DOI

10.31899/rh13.1007

Language

English

Project

Expanding the Evidence Base on Comprehensive Care for Survivors of Sexual Violence in East and Southern Africa

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