Project: BRIDGE/S.P.A.N.-Safe Patient Advacacy Network
Organization: Hope House, Inc.
Independence, MO
Story submitted by Staci L. Denny, Director of Training & Community Education

Antonia's Story

Antonia came to the hospital emergency room stating that she had been in a car accident. Because of our training and the policy to inquire about domestic violence with every female patient, the nurse privately screened Antonia for domestic violence in a separate triage room. She asked, “Because we are concerned for our patients, I always ask: Have you been hit by your partner or does your partner threaten you or make you feel afraid?” With her head bowed, she gave a faint, “Yes, please help me.”

Even though the doctor had not ordered an x-ray for Antonia, the nurse created a false x-ray story to separate the patient from her lingering husband who was unwilling to leave his wife’s side. Then the nurse offered to call a Bridge SPAN advocate to talk with her about her options for getting help. A trained counselor from one of our six domestic violence agencies is always on call for the hospitals in the BridgeSPAN network.

Within 30 minutes, I arrived at Saint Luke’s to provide advocacy to Antonia. She was a little over five feet tall and weighed approximately 100 lbs. When she shook my hand, I was amazed at her delicate features and tried to greet her warmly by looking directly into her eyes. She bowed her head down and I could sense that her spirit and the depths of her being had been beaten down to almost nothing. I was in awe as Antonia took me on a journey of survival and whispered her story to me as if her abusive partner was waiting outside the door.

When I had the opportunity to look in her eyes, I could sense the fear and anguish that had been a consistent part of her life over the past 10 years. She painfully remembered and relived specific moments of her abuse. A week prior, she had been raped by her husband. I informed her that rape is illegal in marriage and she broke down crying. She said to me, “I thought so, but he told me that I had to any time he wanted to because I belong to him and because we are married.” What was horrifying to me was that for the first time in 10 years, she was receiving validation that confirmed her fears – she did not deserve this treatment.

On this first encounter with Antonia, I talked with her about domestic violence and services we offered such as job-skills training, daycare, shelter, police involvement, orders of protection, and counseling. When our visit came to an end, she said “I have hope now. I didn’t realize there were options.” I told her to always remember that the hospital is now a safe place and that she could access our services from any hospital in Kansas City.

Much to my surprise, Antonia accessed our services from another hospital four months later. She had been raped again by her husband and got a ride from a friend to the hospital. As soon as she got to the hospital, the first words out of her mouth were, “Please call a Bridge/SPAN advocate. I want to get safe.” This time she was ready to file an order of protection.

She decided to come into shelter with her children. We called the police because she wanted to press charges and they arrived moments later to arrest her husband. A separate patrol car picked up Antonia, picked up her children from a family’s house and brought her and her children into shelter. When she made it to the shelter she stated, “That nurse saved my life. She did not believe the car accident story and she went out of her way to ask a couple of additional questions.” Antonia believed that had it not have been for the services available at the hospital, that she and perhaps her children would not have survived that night. She now knows that hospitals in Kansas City are safe places to go.

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