Objectives
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:

• Explain and discuss what is meant by "domestic abuse or violence"
• Describe how to recognize its signs and symptoms
• Identify the proper role health care professionals have in regard to this national problem
• List and discuss the resources available to health care professionals when they identify this problem

Introduction
This course addresses the growing and seemingly omnipresent problem of what is so often referred to as domestic abuse or domestic violence. In this course you will review just what is meant by that phrase, who the victims and perpetrators are, how its existence in the lives of patients can be recognized, and what healthcare professionals can do to intercede.