After witnessing firsthand the devastating effects of domestic violence, nurses at Cairns Hospital are scrapping their annual ‘Secret Santa’ tradition to donate gifts to the ABC’s Christmas Care Appeal.

Director of nursing and midwifery at Cairns Hospital, Andrea O’Shea said nurses were often the first to see the range of injuries domestic violence victims presented with.

“[We see] anything from minor bruising to quite severe broken bones and severe bashings,” Ms O’Shea said.

“Also there are the psychological injuries that people are confronted with every day.”

Even with campaigns addressing the issue of domestic violence in the community and an increased awareness of available support services, Ms O’Shea said victims were sometimes still reluctant to disclose the true source of their injuries… Read more>>

Original article written by Phil Staley and Mark Rigby and published on ABC News