Department of Medicine, The University of New South Wales, Black Dog Institute, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
School of Psychiatry, The University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
Emerg Med Australas. 2021 Aug;33(4):703-710. doi: 10.1111/1742-6723.13714. Epub 2021 Jan 31.
To investigate the prevalence of intimate partner violence (IPV) and frequency of victimisation questioning by hospital staff in women presenting to EDs for suicide-related complaints and injuries.
A cross-sectional survey design was used to assess IPV and ED experiences among women with a recent (<18 months) suicide-related presentation to EDs within six Local Health Districts across New South Wales. Women aged 16 years and over, residing in participating health districts were recruited in-person by hospital staff, or via Facebook advertisements. Variables assessed included demographic characteristics, psychosocial assessment coverage and exposure to IPV (Composite Abuse Scale [Revised]-Short-Form). Binary logistic regression was used to test for independent associations between variables on victimisation questioning by hospital staff.
A total of 563 women completed questionnaires following presentation to the ED for a suicide attempt (n = 329; 58%) or suicide crisis (n = 234; 42%). Of these, 200 women (36%) reported IPV exposure in the 18 months prior and 141 women (25%) reported earlier lifetime victimisation. Of the 341 women with a history of IPV, 155 women (45%) were asked about victimisation by hospital staff. Younger age and lower socio-economic status were significantly associated with questioning (P = 0.03).
Findings suggest a large proportion of women seeking support for suicide in the ED are affected by IPV, although few are asked about abuse experiences. Victimisation is associated with complex health issues and heightened mortality risk, which carry important implications for patient-care. Findings support routine ED screening and can be applied to stratify risk within IPV responses.
调查在因自杀相关问题和伤害而到急诊就诊的女性中，亲密伴侣暴力（IPV）的流行率和医院工作人员对受害频率的询问情况。
采用横断面调查设计评估了最近（<18 个月）因自杀相关问题就诊于急诊的女性的 IPV 和 ED 经历。在新南威尔士州六个地方卫生区，16 岁及以上、居住在参与卫生区的女性由医院工作人员亲自或通过 Facebook 广告招募。评估的变量包括人口统计学特征、心理社会评估覆盖范围以及 IPV 暴露情况（综合虐待量表[修订]-短式）。二元逻辑回归用于检验医院工作人员对受害情况询问的独立关联。
共有 563 名女性在因自杀企图（n=329；58%）或自杀危机（n=234；42%）就诊于 ED 后完成了问卷。其中，200 名女性（36%）报告在过去 18 个月内有 IPV 暴露，141 名女性（25%）报告更早的一生中曾受害。在有 IPV 史的 341 名女性中，有 155 名女性（45%）被医院工作人员询问过受害情况。年轻和较低的社会经济地位与询问显著相关（P=0.03）。
研究结果表明，在寻求 ED 自杀支持的女性中，很大一部分受到 IPV 的影响，尽管很少有人被询问过虐待经历。受害与复杂的健康问题和更高的死亡率风险相关，这对患者护理具有重要意义。研究结果支持 ED 常规筛查，并可应用于 IPV 反应中进行风险分层。
