Childhood sexual abuse among new psychiatric outpatients in a city in Northern Alberta-prevalence rate and demographic/clinical predictors

Abstract

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a major global health problem with serious adverse effects at later ages. Our paper examines the prevalence rates and the demographic and clinical predictors of CSA among adult psychiatric outpatients. A data assessment tool was used to compile information on the demographic and clinical characteristics of all new patients assessed in four psychiatric outpatient clinics between 1st January 2014 and 31st December 2015. The 12-month prevalence rate for CSA among new psychiatric outpatients in Fort McMurray was 20.7% (10.7% for males and 26.9% in females). With an odds ratio for sex of 3.30 (CI = 2.06–5.29), female patients are about three times more likely to report a history of CSA compared to male patients when controlling for other factors. Similarly patients with at most high school education (OR = 1.8, CI = 1.145–2.871) and those with previous contact with psychiatric services (OR = 1.7, CI = 1.124–2.616) were about two times more likely to report a history of CSA compared to the patients with college/university education or those with no previous contact with psychiatric services respectively. Similarly, patients with histories of substance abuse (OR = 1.5, CI = 1.179–2.642) and patients with family histories of mental illness (OR = 1.8, CI = 1.032–2.308) had higher likelihoods of reporting histories of CSA compared to patients without histories of substance abuse or family histories of mental illness respectively. Our findings suggest that victims of CSA are an at-risk population in need of ongoing mental health and educational support.Disclosure of interestThe authors have not supplied their declaration of competing interest.