QCOSTARICA – Every month, at least seven women arrive at the Calderón Guardia Hospital emergency room victims of violence, mainly sexual and physical.
For that, the medical center called on the population to report any type of aggression, within the framework of the International Day for Non-Violence against Women, which is commemorated every November 25.
“The main cases of violence that are dealt with are related to issues of money, economy and heritage, as well as psychological, physical, sexual, emotional and digital violence, the latter is linked to any violent act committed, assisted or aggravated by the use of technology such as mobile phones, Internet, social media, video games, text messages, emails, among others,” commented Jéssica Pérez Villalobos, Mental Health nurse and coordinator of the Hospital’s Intrafamily and Sexual Violence Commission.
“In the case of violence against minors, the respective complaint is made to the Fiscalía de la Niñez y la Adolescencia (Office of the Prosecutor for Children and Adolescents), if the patient is an adult, it is reported to the Fiscalía de Género (Office of the Gender Prosecutor),” she added.
The Calderón Guardia Hospital, Pérez explained, has an established protocol to reach out to each victim. Once a case is detected, the complaint is made and respective references are made to other services, according to the condition and situation of the affected person. In addition, the Ministry of Health is notified.
Subsequently, the woman is cared for by a team that includes professionals in Medicine, Psychology, Social Work and, if necessary, other professionals.
The medical center has three multidisciplinary teams that complement and support each other to follow up the cases: the Local Commission for the Attention of Physical and Sexual Violence cases, the local Committee for the comprehensive study of the abused boy, girl and adolescent (CEINNAA ) and the Rapid Response team of the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS).
In addition, for a better outreach, actions are coordinated with the Patronato Nacional de la Infancia (PANI) – National Children’s Trust, the Mixed Institute for Social Assistance (IMAS), the National Institute for Women (INAMU), and the JOrganismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ), among other organizations.
International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women
The premise of the day is to raise awareness of the fact that women around the world are subject to rape, domestic violence and other forms of violence; furthermore, one of the aims of the day is to highlight that the scale and true nature of the issue is often hidden.
Historically, the date is based on the date of the 1960 assassination of the three Mirabal sisters, political activists in the Dominican Republic; the killings were ordered by Dominican dictator Rafael Trujillo (1930–1961).
In 1981, activists at the Latin American and Caribbean Feminist Encuentros marked November 25 as a day to combat and raise awareness of violence against women more broadly; on February 7, 2000, the date received its official United Nations (UN) resolution.
