Violence against women: here are the hospitals open for consultations, counselling and support programmes

From psychosocial consultations to clinical tests and examinations for possible infectious diseases, from talks on gender-based abuse to the actual management of cases in accordance with company procedures, including, where necessary, referral to the anti-violence centre: in the run-up to 25 November, over 210 healthcare centres across Italia bearing the ‘pink sticker’ are mobilising for a week of awareness-raising – from 23 to 29 November – promoted by the Fondazione Onda Ets. The map of the services offered by each centre can be easily consulted to provide initial guidance, a professional response or simply to encourage anyone who is in difficulty or wishes to let a friend know that help is available.

An additional resource that the Onda Foundation is making available to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, as part of the sixth edition of its (H) Open Week on this theme. The figures are stark and reflect the reality of everyday life: in Italia, almost one in three women has experienced at least one instance of physical or sexual violence during her lifetime. According to the latest Istat estimates, around 6.4 million women aged between 16 and 75 have experienced at least one incident of physical or sexual violence since the age of 16, equivalent to 31.9 per cent, and 17.9 per cent of women aged between 16 and 70 have experienced psychological violence within a relationship. This is a phenomenon that cuts across all social groups, levels of education and economic circumstances, and which makes it necessary to complement support and protection measures with an increasingly robust commitment to prevention. Since 2023, the Fondazione Onda ETS’s awareness-raising campaign on gender-based violence has been awarded the Medal of the Presidency of the Republic.

“The figures on violence against women are alarming, particularly amongst younger women: over the past ten years, the proportion of girls aged between 16 and 24 who have experienced sexual violence has risen from 17.7 per cent to 30.8 per cent,” notes Francesca Merzagora, president of Fondazione Onda Ets. This increase means we must take action on two fronts: on the one hand, offering women who experience violence practical tools to seek help and access protection programmes; on the other, investing in prevention, starting in schools, to help young people recognise the early signs of abuse in relationships. This is the direction taken by our (H) Open Week, which strengthens collaboration between hospitals and anti-violence centres, and the ‘Strappi’ educational campaign, dedicated to the younger generation.’

“Strappi” is aimed at secondary school pupils and is run in collaboration with Librì Progetti Educativi: the aim is to prevent gender-based violence, starting in the classroom. The project directly involves teachers, providing classes with an educational kit comprising a teacher’s guide and 25 illustrated books for pupils, through which to develop a programme of reflection on emotions, personal boundaries and the signs of violence in relationships. At the heart of the initiative is a creative workshop, during which pupils, working in pairs, are invited to depict, through portraits, words, colours and collages, the ‘tears’ that can mark a relationship. The works created will be entered into a national competition, the winners of which will be announced on 25 November, to mark the International Day – first to participating schools via a dedicated virtual event and subsequently to the wider public via the Foundation’s social media channels. “A way of transforming schools into spaces for discussion and raising awareness, actively involving pupils and teachers in building relationships based on respect and understanding,” explains the Onda Foundation.