Evaluating FrameNet-Based Semantic Modeling for Gender-Based Violence Detection in Clinical Records

TL;DR

This study explores the use of FrameNet-based semantic annotation in electronic medical records to improve the detection of gender-based violence, showing that semantic features enhance classifier performance over traditional data.

Contribution

It introduces a novel application of semantic annotation with FrameNet in clinical records to better identify gender-based violence cases, outperforming models using only structured data.

Findings

Semantic annotation improves GBV detection accuracy

Models with semantic features outperform categorical models

Semantic analysis provides meaningful signals beyond demographic data

Abstract

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a major public health issue, with the World Health Organization estimating that one in three women experiences physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner during her lifetime. In Brazil, although healthcare professionals are legally required to report such cases, underreporting remains significant due to difficulties in identifying abuse and limited integration between public information systems. This study investigates whether FrameNet-based semantic annotation of open-text fields in electronic medical records can support the identification of patterns of GBV. We compare the performance of an SVM classifier for GBV cases trained on (1) frame-annotated text, (2) annotated text combined with parameterized data, and (3) parameterized data alone. Quantitative and qualitative analyses show that models incorporating semantic annotation outperform categorical models, achieving over 0.3 improvement in F1 score and demonstrating that domain-specific semantic representations provide meaningful signals beyond structured demographic data. The findings support the hypothesis that semantic analysis of clinical narratives can enhance early identification strategies and support more informed public health interventions.