Gaps in Medical Students' Competencies to Deal With Intimate Partner Violence in Key Mozambican Medical Schools

Beatriz Manuel; Kristien Roelens; Armindo Tiago; Ines Keygnaert; Martin Valcke

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2019.00204

Gaps in Medical Students' Competencies to Deal With Intimate Partner Violence in Key Mozambican Medical Schools

Front Public Health. 2019 Jul 24:7:204. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2019.00204. eCollection 2019.

Authors

Beatriz Manuel^{1

2}, Kristien Roelens³, Armindo Tiago⁴, Ines Keygnaert², Martin Valcke⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Community Health, Faculty of Medicine, University Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique.
² Department of Public Health and Primary Care, International Centre for Reproductive Health, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.
³ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent University Hospital, Ghent, Belgium.
⁴ Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine, University Eduardo Mondlane, Maputo, Mozambique.
⁵ Department of Educational Studies, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium.

Abstract

Purpose: The researchers aimed to identify the gaps in competencies designed to help medical students to deal with Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in key Mozambican medical schools curricula. Method: A survey was administered to 3rd and 6th-year medical students (N387), enrolled in five medical schools in Mozambique. The instrument focused on mapping students' perceived mastery of their knowledge, skills, and attitudes related to IPV. Results: In total, 387 medical students (RR 66%) participated in the survey. The overall mean perceived mastery of IPV competence was 36.18 (SD = 24.52) for knowledge, 32.01 (SD = 27.37) for skills, and 43.47 (SD = 27.58) for attitudes. Though 6th-year students reported a significantly higher mastery level, it is still below a mastery-learning benchmark of 80%. Conclusions: Medical students report critically low levels in their mastery of IPV- related competencies. This implies a need for a more comprehensive approach to developing knowledge, skills, and attitudes to deal with the victims of IPV.

Keywords: Mozambican medical curricula; competencies; intimate partner violence; medical education; medical students.