PRACTICE GUIDELINES

SUSTAIN Guidelines: The “REAL” Transformation Model

The SUSTAIN Guidelines are based on the “REAL” Transformation Model which is designed to assist with implementing sustainable domestic and family violence (DFV) screening and response in antenatal care.

The Relate, Engage, Act, Learn (“REAL”) Transformation Model was developed through ANROWS research entitled Sustainability of identification and response to family violence in antenatal care: The SUSTAIN study. It identified essential elements pertaining to four different levels of the antenatal care system: the woman, the practitioners, the clinic and the health system itself. The “how” pertains to characteristics of the relationship between women and their practitioners, and important elements that facilitate effective engagement of a woman. The “why” concerns practical actions required within the clinic and health system, as well as activities related to learning to enable reflection on practice and systems to build practitioners’ knowledge and skills and strengthen existing systems.

Practical scripts and reflective questions for each element of this model can be found in these SUSTAIN Guidelines, which were created to support hospital antenatal services’ and practitioners’ readiness to respond to DFV via reflective questions and practical scripts.

Suggested citation

Hegarty, K., Spangaro, J., Koziol-McLain, J., Walsh, J., Lee, A., Kyei-Onanjiri, M., Matthews, R., Valpied, J., Chapman, J., Hooker, L., McLindon, E., Novy, K., & Spurway, K. (2020). SUSTAIN Guidelines: The “REAL” Transformation Model. ANROWS.