Abstract
BackgroundSince many health problems are associated with abuse and neglect at all ages, domestic violence victims may be considered as a group of primary care patients in need of special attention.MethodsThe aim of this multi-centre study was to assess the prevalence of domestic violence in primary care patients, and to identify those factors which influence the co-occurrence of psychological and physical violence exposure and their consequences (physical, sexual and reproductive and psychological) as obtained from medical records.A study was carried out in 28 family practices in Slovenia in 2009. Twenty-eight family physicians approached every fifth family practice attendee, regardless of gender, to be interviewed about their exposure to domestic violence and asked to specify the perpetrator and the frequency. Out of 840 patients asked, 829 individuals, 61.0% women (n = 506) and 39.0% men (n = 323) were assessed (98.7% response rate). They represented a randomised sample of general practice attendees, aged 18 years and above, who had visited their physician for health problems and who were given a physical examination. Visits for administrative purposes were excluded.Multivariate binary logistic regression analysis was used to determine the factors associated with exposure to both psychological and physical violence.ResultsOf 829 patients, 15.3% reported some type of domestic violence experienced during the previous five years; 5.9% reported physical and 9.4% psychological violence; of these 19.2% of men and 80.8% of women had been exposed to psychological violence, while 22.4% of men and 77.6% of women had been exposed to physical violence. The domestic violence victims were mostly women (p < 0.001) aged up to 35 years (p = 0.001). Exposure to psychological violence was more prevalent than exposure to physical violence. Of the women, 20.0% were exposed to either type of violence, compared to 8.0% of male participants, who reported they were rarely exposed to physical violence, while women reported often or constant exposure to physical violence. Their partners were mostly the perpetrators of domestic violence towards women, while amongst men the perpetrators were mostly other family members.In univariate analysis female gender was shown to be a risk factor for domestic violence exposure. Regression modelling, explaining 40% of the variance, extracted two factors associated with psychological and physical violence exposure: the abuse of alcohol in the patient (OR 4.7; 95% CI 1.54-14.45) and their unemployment (OR 13.3; 95% CI 1.53-116.45).ConclusionsAs far as the study design permits, the identified factors associated with both psychological and physical violence exposure could serve as determinants to raise family physicians' awareness when exploring the prevalence of domestic violence. The results of previous research, showing at least 15% prevalence of exposure to domestic violence among primary care patients in Slovenia, and the female gender as a risk factor, were confirmed.
Highlights
Since many health problems are associated with abuse and neglect at all ages, domestic violence victims may be considered as a group of primary care patients in need of special attention
As the majority of studies deal with domestic violence victims on the basis of population, the aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of domestic violence, and to identify the perpetrators and the determinants of exposure to psychological and physical violence in family practice patients, so that General Practitioners (GPs) are more able to detect them amongst the large numbers of patients in their practices
15(19.2%) males and 63(80.8%) females had been exposed to psychological violence, while 11(22.4%) men and 38(77.6%) women had been exposed to physical violence
Summary
Since many health problems are associated with abuse and neglect at all ages, domestic violence victims may be considered as a group of primary care patients in need of special attention. Domestic violence is a common and worrying social phenomenon. Ronan et al [1] stated that according to law enforcement statistics, domestic violence is the most frequent criminal activity in the USA. The data show that one out of seven women has experienced domestic violence and that 20-40% of women will become victims at least once in their lives [3,4]. According to a European Women’s Lobby survey report, every fourth or fifth woman in the European Union has experienced violence from her partner [5]. The Council of Europe’s findings are very similar, indicating that at least once in adulthood, between one fifth and one quarter of women experience domestic violence. In addition to physical violence, more than 10% of women have experienced sexual violence [6]
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.