Abstract
BackgroundIntimate partner violence (IPV) has important impacts on the health of women in society. Our aim was to estimate the health and economic benefits of reducing the prevalence of IPV in the 2008 Australian female adult population.MethodsSimulation models were developed to show the effect of a 5 percentage point absolute feasible reduction target in the prevalence of IPV from current Australian levels (27 %). IPV is not measured in national surveys. Levels of psychological distress were used as a proxy for exposure to IPV since psychological conditions represent three-quarters of the disease burden from IPV. Lifetime cohort health benefits for females were estimated as fewer incident cases of violence-related disease and injury; deaths; and Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs). Opportunity cost savings were estimated for the health sector, paid and unpaid production and leisure from reduced incidence of IPV-related disease and deaths. Workforce production gains were estimated by comparing surveyed participation and absenteeism rates of females with moderate psychological distress (lifetime IPV exposure) against high or very high distress (current IPV exposure), and valued using the friction cost approach (FCA). The impact of improved health status on unpaid household production and leisure time were modelled from time use survey data. Potential costs associated with interventions to reduce IPV were not considered. Multivariable uncertainty analyses and univariable sensitivity analyses were undertaken.ResultsA 5 percentage point absolute reduction in the lifetime prevalence of IPV in the 2008 Australian female population was estimated to produce 6000 fewer incident cases of disease/injury, 74 fewer deaths, 5000 fewer DALYs lost and provide gains of 926,000 working days, 371,000 days of home-based production and 428,000 leisure days. Overall, AUD371 million in opportunity cost savings could be achievable. The greatest economic savings would be home-based production (AUD147 million), followed by leisure time (AUD98 million), workforce production (AUD94 million) and reduced health sector costs (AUD38 million).ConclusionsThis study contributes new knowledge about the economic impact of IPV in females. The findings provide evidence of large potential opportunity cost savings from reducing the prevalence of IPV and reinforce the need to reduce IPV in Australia, and elsewhere.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-015-1931-y) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Highlights
Intimate partner violence (IPV) has important impacts on the health of women in society
If a woman ceases to be exposed to current IPV, we have modelled that she will change from a high level of psychological distress to a moderate level, since she remains exposed to lifetime IPV
If the prevalence of IPV in the adult Australian population was reduced by 5 percentage points, the estimated 34,000 annual new cases of IPV-related disease could be reduced by 6000 (18 %); the 440 annual deaths attributed to IPV could be reduced by 74 deaths (17 %); and the estimated 29,000 Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) attributed to IPV could be reduced by about 5000 (17 %) (Table 2)
Summary
Intimate partner violence (IPV) has important impacts on the health of women in society. Intimate partner violence (IPV) is an important global public health problem. It was ranked 23rd in terms of Disability Adjusted Life Years (DALYs) arising in women in the most recent update of the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) Study 2010, following after other important risk factors such as high total cholesterol, suboptimal breastfeeding, alcohol use, physical inactivity, high blood pressure and dietary risks [1]. IPV refers to violence occurring between people who are, or were formerly, in an intimate relationship and were subject to economic, psychological or emotional abuse through to physical and sexual violence [4]
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