Evaluation of the Impact on Mental and Physical Health of Caring for Women Who Are Victims of Sexual and Gender-based Violence, Using a Coordinated Multidisciplinary Approach in Women's Centres or Traditional Health Centres.

Gender-based or sexual violence, or violence against women (VAW), is a global public health problem affecting around 30% of women over the age of 15, with significant consequences for physical and mental health, including depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

In 2019, the French National Authority for Health (HAS) published recommendations in two parts, one for identifying women who are victims of domestic violence, and the other for dealing with a woman who has been exposed to such violence. But violence against women is not limited to the marital sphere. VAW can simply be detected in a consultation using a translated version of the Abuse Assessment Screen (AAS) questionnaire.

Women who are victims of VAW have specific needs linked to the often repeated nature of the violence they experience, and the complex trauma that can ensue. They also tend to combine other risk factors for poor mental health, such as economic insecurity and social isolation. In France, dealing with the specific medical, psychosocial and legal needs of victims-survivors of VAW has come up against a number of obstacles, including a lack of dedicated care facilities, a lack of trained professionals and a lack of coordination between the various parties. Health professionals rarely receive the training they need to deal with VAW-related issues with confidence and professionalism, and often lack the resources to refer female victims to appropriate care.

"La Maison des Femmes" (MdF) was set up in 2016 in Saint-Denis, located in a department where a quarter of the women who consult a family planning centre (FPC) has suffered from VAW. It is a hospital service specifically dedicated to the individualised, multidisciplinary care of victims-survivors of VAW, offering health, social and legal support within the same facility. The MdF comprises 4 units: a FPC, a violence management unit (involving doctors, midwives, psychologists, social workers, lawyers, police officers and support groups), a female genital mutilation management unit (surgeons and sexologists) and a 24/7 reception unit for victims of sexual violence.

Several MdF-inspired care structures have been set up in France. The service provided by these facilities needs to be evaluated, particularly in terms of their ability to improve the physical and mental health, including post-traumatic stress, of women who have been victims of VAW.