Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a largely undetected occurrence in the United States reported by 36-50% of women in their lifetime and associated with extensive physical and psychological implications. Currently, conflicting recommendations exist regarding screening practices with the United States Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF) and the World Health Organization (WHO) advocating for and against universal screening, respectively. With research suggesting that women are seldom asked about IPV during clinic visits, further information is needed regarding current screening practices.
Objectives: To identify current IPV screening approaches in the primary care setting and factors that may impact screening completion.
Methods: We retrospectively examined patients presenting for annual examinations at four university-associated primary care clinics in southeast Florida (n = 400). Patient demographics, screener demographics, screening completion, and screening results were collected from the medical record. Results were compared to depression and anxiety screenings due to comparable prevalence and screening recommendations. Pearson chi square and Fisher exact tests were utilized to compare screening rates by demographic characteristics.
Results: IPV screening occurred at a much lower frequency (8.5%) compared to screenings for anxiety (37.3%) and depression (71.3%). Among documented IPV screenings, 64.7% of encounters resulted in patient refusal to be screened. Screening rates were found to be marginally impacted by patient ethnicity (P = 0.052).
Conclusions: Findings of both low screening rates and low screening success raise significant concerns for the shortcomings of advocating for universal IPV screening. Therefore, additional studies are necessary to identify covert barriers to screening completion before universal inquiry is advised.
Keywords: Dating violence; domestic violence; healthcare surveys; intimate partner violence; primary health care; spouse violence.
Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a largely undetected occurrence reported by 36–50% of women in their lifetime. Currently, IPV screening recommendations vary across organizations like the USPSTF and WHO. Given its widespread impact, we aimed to identify current IPV screening practices and gaps using patients who presented for annual examinations at four primary care clinics (n = 400). Patient demographics, screener demographics, screening completion, and screening results were collected from the medical record. IPV screening frequency was compared to frequency of depression and anxiety screenings given comparable screening recommendations and prevalence. IPV screening occurred less frequently (8.5%) compared to anxiety (37.3%) and depression (71.3%) screenings. Out of attempted IPV screens, 64.7% resulted in patient refusal to answer related questions. IPV screening rates were marginally impacted by patient ethnicity (P = 0.052). Our findings suggest shortcomings of universal screening and highlight the necessity to further elucidate barriers and improve screening efficacy.
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