One disclosure. One plea for secrecy. One child at home.
Domestic abuse is where patient trust collides with absolute legal duty — and your actions in the first few minutes can determine whether harm escalates or is prevented.

In this high-stakes MSRA SJT deep dive, you will master the exact UK-legal, GMC-aligned domestic abuse safeguarding framework — with zero ambiguity on when confidentiality must be overridden to protect life.

You will learn:
✅ The Domestic Abuse Act 2021 definition — including economic abuse
✅ Why children are automatic safeguarding victims if DA is present
✅ Your GMC-mandated first response: private inquiry + validation
✅ The immediate safety checklist (injuries, police, safe transport)
✅ Why mediation or “hearing both sides” is always unsafe
✅ The DASH (SafeLives) 24-item risk assessment
✅ Non-fatal strangulation (NFS) as a medical & homicide emergency
✅ High-risk red flags: weapons, pregnancy, separation
✅ Escalation to MARAC for high-risk cases
✅ The role of the IDVA as the patient’s key advocate
✅ When confidentiality must be breached lawfully
✅ The minimum-necessary information sharing rule
✅ Safe documentation in the era of online patient portals
✅ The complete SAFE HOME safeguarding mnemonic
✅ Why couples counselling during abuse is dangerous
✅ Three non-negotiable professional safeguarding rules

This episode is essential for:
• MSRA SJT candidates
• Foundation Doctors & GP Trainees
• Emergency, medical, surgical & community clinicians
• Anyone responsible for adult & child safeguarding in the NHS

📎 More MSRA resources to accompany this episode:
https://passthemsra.com

00:00 — High-stakes disclosure scenario: coercive control & a child at home
00:57 — Why domestic abuse is one of the highest-risk clinical duties
01:19 — Core professional mindset for DA safeguarding
01:57 — Domestic Abuse Act 2021: full legal definition
02:28 — Economic abuse explained
03:00 — Children as automatic safeguarding victims
03:24 — GMC duties when abuse is disclosed
03:56 — Immediate best-practice response: privacy & validation
04:27 — Model validation phrase that saves lives
04:43 — Immediate safety checklist: injuries, police, transport
05:02 — Communication safety traps (texts, letters, unsafe addresses)
05:20 — Why mediation with the partner is always unsafe
06:02 — Introduction to the DASH risk assessment
06:14 — Why DASH is used across all UK agencies
06:41 — Non-fatal strangulation (NFS) as a homicide predictor
07:25 — Other urgent red flags: weapons, pregnancy, separation
07:51 — Why children always mandate safeguarding referral
08:08 — When and how to escalate to MARAC
08:43 — The role of the IDVA
09:04 — The full step-by-step safeguarding sequence
09:41 — When confidentiality can be lawfully overridden
10:25 — Minimum-necessary information sharing
10:59 — Digital records & patient portal safeguarding risks
11:49 — SAFE HOME mnemonic explained
12:14 — Three absolute professional takeaways
13:01 — Why couples counselling during abuse is dangerous
13:36 — Final life-saving clinical & professional message