EVALUATION OF THE MODULE ON DOMESTIC VIOLENCE AT THE UCLA SCHOOL-OF-MEDICINE

Physicians and other hospital staff have a unique opportunity to assis t victims of abuse. It is imperative that they develop the skills nece ssary to to identify and diagnose cases and provide the support and re ferral services needed to help victims end the cycle of violence. This paper describes a comprehensive evaluation of the instructional desig n, implementation, and learning outcomes of the Domestic Violence Modu le at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) School of Medic ine to determine the effectiveness of this curriculum in helping medic al students develop such skills. Expert reviewers found it to be an in novative, well-planned curriculum, and students and faculty tutors exp ressed a great deal of interest in and satisfaction with the course as a whole. However, the different evaluation components identified the same areas for improvement: (1) students need more opportunity to prac tice skills and receive feedback during the module, (2) there is incon sistency across classes in what is learned, and (3) tutors need better preparation sessions. The student outcomes reflected these needs and therefore suggest that the study may be useful in determining the comp onents of an effective curriculum. After the training, the students re ported significant increases in their feelings of self-efficacy and in their intentions, especially in comparison with a group of control st udents. Therefore, the module seems to be successful in inspiring medi cal students to work with victims of abuse.