Violence against women commited by intimate partners: (in)visibility of the problem

The objective is to identify the reasons behind violence against women and describe the acts perpetrated by an intimate partner. Documentary study, qualitative conducted at the Special Police Service to Women. We analyzed 902 occurrences between August/2009 and December/2011, whose victims had at least eighteen years old. We collected the data of occurrences, transcribing literally, stories of the victims and treating it them through the content analysis. It was observed as triggers of violence: male supremacy as a generator of suffering and submission; problems arising from drug use, problems related to children and division of assets. The severity was scaled for the consequences to the victim and their family. The nursing staff as part of the support network , need to understand this phenomenon as a health problem and strive to break through the barriers that impede effective and efficient service , assisting in the strengthening of women's autonomy and including men in combat actions and prevention of violence against women.