Violence and abuse against women with disabilities: Relevance for professionals in Spain

Abstract

Violence against women with disabilities is a difficult situation to detect and requires a multidisciplinary approach. The objective is to identify the needs and deficiencies in the care and treatment of cases of violence against women with disabilities in order to develop strategies for improvement. 295 professionals participated in the Women and Disability Conference, organised by the Spanish CERMI in 2019, in three locations in the CastillaLeon ´ Community. This is a qualitative study with focus groups. The information was analysed and coded, creating four categories: identification, detection, action and prevention. All types of violence are found. There is little information about this situation. The participants propose to guarantee help based on trust, listening and individuality. Professionals show a good knowledge of the problem. There is a lack of preventive programmes, coordination between the bodies involved, a mediator to accompany the process and comprehensive support to achieve social inclusion.