NMU Video To Help Abused Women
Professors Seek To Dispel Excuse That Alcohol Is Factor in Domestic Abuse
By Ryan Schlehuber

Alcohol abuse or intoxication should not be accepted as an excuse by women who are abused by men, say two Northern Michigan University (NMU) professors, who are interviewing 40 abused women for an information video to be distributed to all domestic violence shelters and substance abuse facilities in Michigan.

"Alcohol should not be accepted as an excuse or reason to abuse someone," said Ira Hutchison, head of the Department of Sociology and Social Work. "There are several kinds of abuse cases, however, we are focusing on the biggest problem, men hitting women. There are certainly other forms of abuses that are just as serious, however, women don't terrorize men like men terrorize women."

Dr. Hutchison and Kerri Schuiling, associate dean of nursing, will interview 40 volunteer women who have been abused, and pull out common themes.

"Many women say, 'If he'd only stop drinking, he wouldn't hit me so much,' but the thing is, they also hit them when they're sober," he noted.

The 45-minute video will be based on interviews with the women about their experiences.

"It will, as far as I can tell, be the first video to focus on something applied to alcohol and violence," Dr. Hutchinson said, "and we will have a product that will help treatment centers and medical facilities."

More women are beginning to speak out these days, said Dr. Schuiling, who chairs the board of a new women's shelter in Marquette.

"The wrong people have been hiding," she said, although she believes things are progressively changing for the better.

"The opening of our new women's shelter in Marquette is widely known, where before, [such a thing] was kept secret for the privacy of the abused women," she said.

The video will also be useful to nurses, said Dr. Schuiling.

"Nursing education pays attention to some domestic abuse education, but it is contained as part of a lecture," she said. "The video will be very poignant for nurses because it will be the survivors talking."

Nurses, she said, are usually the first to discover a patient has been abused, and they have the best opportunity to establish a therapeutic relationship with abused female patients. Listening to women speaking out about their experiences on the video may help nurses find better ways to approach patients about their experiences, about which they may feel embarrassed or frightened.

"We have women who come in and say they've been abused, but never report who abused them," said Tamie Hartwig, director of nursing for acute care at Mackinac Straits Hospital. "Many times they pay their examination bill in cash instead of by credit card, so there is no record their abuser can trace back to them."

The important message that will be relayed through the video, said Dr. Schuiling, is that abuse is not the fault of the victim.

The project is being funded with a $78,000 grant from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation of Michigan.