Washington DC, 6 December 2023 (PAHO/WHO) – Delegates from across the Region of the Americas recently convened to launch three new courses, aimed at strengthening health personnel skills to address violence against women and girls. Launched on November 28 during a live virtual event organized by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) and the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the three self-paced courses are now accessible on PAHO’s Virtual Campus for Public Health.
The introductory course, 'Training on the Medico-Legal Response to Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Violence', is aimed at medico-legal providers, including health workers as well as laboratory staff, legal experts, and police officers. Another course, 'Training on the Health sector response to violence against women and girls', is designed for health workers. It covers how to identify survivors of violence early in healthcare settings, provide first-line support (LIVES), and offer essential clinical care to survivors of violence. This course also includes an optional train-the-trainer module for those interested in using the materials to train others. Both courses were developed with support from the Government of Canada.
Additionally, the 'Training on Strengthening the Regional Health Sector Capacity to Prevent and Respond to Violence Against Women in the Caribbean' is a pilot course tailored for policymakers in the Caribbean. It focuses on building skills through a public health approach to preventing and responding to violence against women and girls. This course was developed in collaboration with UNFPA under the Spotlight Initiative funded by the European Union.
In support of the Caribbean Spotlight Initiative, Ministry of Health representatives from Grenada, Jamaica, and Trinidad and Tobago participated in the event to showcase advancements in their health systems to address violence against women. The delegates affirmed that all countries must foster a culture of respect, where the rights and dignity of women and girls are upheld and protected. However, as the Director of the PAHO Caribbean Subregional Office, Mr. Dean Chambliss alluded, the reality often looks very different. “Up to 66 million women and girls in the Americas are estimated to experience intimate partner violence at least once in their lifetime since the age of 15 - these numbers are shocking and must change,” Mr. Chambliss said. Ms Malgorzata Wasilewska, Ambassador for the Delegation of the European Union to Barbados, the Eastern Caribbean States, the OECS, and CARICOM/CARIFORUM warned "The impact of gender-based violence against women and girls, is a massive impediment to economic activity, and therefore, negatively impacting development, not to mention of course, the massive infringement on human rights".
The burden of violence on women and girls, and their families and communities, is especially staggering because these costs are preventable. Ms. Leah Marchuk, Director of Inter-American Affairs, Global Affairs Canada, stressed that “We all share the responsibility to ensure that women and girls enjoy the respect, protection, and freedom that is rightfully theirs”. Speakers emphasized the significance of the virtual launch event which focuses on a critical aspect of this important agenda: enhancing the health system's ability to respond to violence against women and girls. It is essential that when a woman or girl experiences violence, they receive the necessary information, help, and support they need and want. Ms Silvana Luciani, Unit Chief, Department of Noncommunicable Diseases and Mental Health, PAHO underlined that women survivors often name health workers as the first professional point of contact to seek help when faced with violence. To this end, health services have the potential to provide a refuge for women, a trusted space to ask questions and receive understanding and help.
In direct recognition of the critical role of health systems in the response to violence against women and girls, the governing bodies of PAHO adopted a Regional Strategy and Plan of Action on Strengthening the Health System to Address Violence against Women in 2015. This strategy specifically addressed the need for training for the health workers so that every woman and girl receives the care and support they rightfully deserve.
This work is a collaborative effort involving the Government of Canada, the European Union, the CARICOM Secretariat, and the United Nations Population Fund.
Access the courses:
- Training on the Medico-Legal Response to Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Violence. Register at: https://www.campusvirtualsp.org/en/course/medico-legal-response
- Training on the Health sector response to violence against women and girls. Register at: https://www.campusvirtualsp.org/en/course/response-violence
- Training on strengthening the regional, subregional, and national health sector capacity to prevent and respond to violence against women in the Caribbean: a pilot version of the course is available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JOZnWKq2muGNxHr6PPbkMbrhABBOP_YK/view?usp=sharing, with feedback invited by 11 December 2023 at this link.
Courses are available in English targeting the English-speaking Caribbean with translation in other languages available in due course.
