Determinants of Domestic Violence among Women Attending Gender Based Violence Centre (GBV) At Nakuru County Referral Hospital

Authors

  • Kulei Stella Jepkoech Egerton University

Abstract

Domestic violence include all acts of physical, sexual psychological or economic violence that occur within the family or domestic unit or between former or current spouses or partners. The violence against women cases continue to increase in Kenya and globally. Domestic violence is highly skewed towards women than in male partners. Violence against Women (VAW) is a fundamental violation of women’s rights. 30% of women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence.  In Kenya VAW is still regarded as a private family matter. Violence against women by an intimate partner has strong traditional and cultural considerations. 45% of women between 15-49 years have experience physical violence. Almost 75% of women in Kenya experienced domestic violence (KDHS, 2014). Nakuru is one of the counties with high prevalence of domestic violence against women. Violence among women is still largely experienced by women across Kenya and therefore an urgent need for effective ways of reducing its prevalence. This study therefore attempted to establish awareness and factors contributing to domestic violence among women. The study found that thirty one per cent (31%) of the respondents were aged 18 - 28 years while 19% were aged above 50 years, 32% were married while 18% were widows/widowers. The findings further revealed that 36% of the respondents got their income from the farm while 42% earned between 500 - 5000Kshs monthly, while minorities 8% earnedKshs15001 and above. Culture influenced domestic violence, majority 77% of the respondents said their culture did not allow women to make decisions concerning the family. It was also found that 65% of the respondents were aware of domestic violence and 30% said domestic violence was common in their area. Fifty nine per cent knew victims of domestic violence. Culture was the main contributing factor to domestic violence. Men were allowed to beat their wives as a form of punishment for an alleged mistake or behavior.  The study found that GBV affects women globally thus women should be empowered socially, emotionally and economically in gender issues and be involved in decision making at all levels. Women should also know their rights in the society. The government should ensure that legal framework and policies including enforcement of legal punishment to the perpetrators of GBV against women are implemented. The ministry of education to consider introducing GBV violence in Kenya’s educational curriculum therefore creating awareness at early age.

Keywords: Domestic violence, Gender Based violence, Violence against women, maternal knowledge, Female Genital Mutilation, Victim

Author Biography

Kulei Stella Jepkoech, Egerton University

Lecturer,  Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Egerton University

P.O. Box 536-20115 Egerton,Njoro, Kenya

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Published

2021-08-10

How to Cite

Jepkoech, K. S. (2021). Determinants of Domestic Violence among Women Attending Gender Based Violence Centre (GBV) At Nakuru County Referral Hospital. Journal of Medicine, Nursing & Public Health, 4(2), 19–31. Retrieved from https://stratfordjournals.org/journals/index.php/Journal-of-Medicine-Nursing-P/article/view/866

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