Health Indicator Report of Domestic Violence During the Perinatal Time Period
Domestic violence, also known as intimate partner violence (IPV), is a major public health problem. IPV is defined as behavior designed to exert undue control over another person using physical, sexual, verbal, or emotional abuse by an intimate partner or spouse.
Although individuals of all ages may experience IPV, it occurs most often among people of reproductive age. People with histories of IPV before pregnancy are at risk for unintended pregnancies, depression, and anxiety. People with histories of IPV during pregnancy are at greater risk of poor pregnancy weight gain, infection, anemia, tobacco use, stillbirth, pelvic fracture, placental abruption, fetal injury, preterm delivery, and low birth weight, as well as depression and anxiety through the first year postpartum.
Notes
The PRAMS survey asked the following two questions: [[br]] 1) During the 12 months before you got pregnant with your new baby, did your husband/ partner, ex-husband/partner, or someone else push, hit, slap, kick, choke, or physically hurt you in any other way? [[br]] 2) During your most recent pregnancy, did your husband/partner, ex-husband/partner or someone else push, hit, slap, kick, choke, or physically hurt you in any other way?Data Source
Utah Department of Health and Human Services Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS)Data Interpretation Issues
The data only includes people who reported physical abuse during the perinatal time period. It does not include other forms of abuse. A stratified random sampling approach is used in selecting women 2-4 months postpartum to participate in PRAMS. The data are weighted by the CDC to represent the birth population for that year, adjusted for sampling probabilities, nonresponse, and noncoverage. Each strata must achieve a weighted response rate of 50% or it is not considered representative of that population. See the PRAMS website at [https://www.cdc.gov/prams/php/methodology/] for more detailed information on PRAMS and its methodology.Definition
The percentage of people who reported physical abuse by their husband/partner, ex-husband/ex-partner, or someone else during the 12 months before pregnancy, or during pregnancy, divided by the number of people who delivered a live infant.Numerator
The number of people who reported physical abuse by their partner/husband, ex-husband/ex-partner, or someone else during the 12 months before pregnancy, or during pregnancy.Denominator
The number of women who delivered a live birth.Other Objectives
Healthy People 2030: IVP-D04 Reduce intimate partner violence (i.e., contact sexual violence, physical violence, and stalking) across the lifespan (developmental)How Are We Doing?
The overall percentage of people experiencing domestic violence in the year before pregnancy or during pregnancy in Utah was 2.5% during 2019-2022. While IPV during pregnancy has serious consequences, it is often undetected during prenatal visits. 36% of people who delivered a live infant in 2022 said their prenatal care provider did not ask if someone was hurting them emotionally or physically.What Is Being Done?
The Maternal and Infant Health Program (MIHP) aims to educate healthcare providers and women of reproductive age about domestic violence by providing information and links to helpful resources.Evidence-based Practices
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) recommends screening all patients for domestic violence, and for women who are pregnant, screening should take place multiple times throughout the pregnancy as well as at the postpartum checkup. Screening with explicit questioning can help identify victims of IPV. Although various models of questioning are available, one simple approach recommended by ACOG, is the SAFE screening technique:[[br]] *__Stress/Safety__: Do you feel safe in your relationship?[[br]] *__Afraid/Abused__: Have you been physically hurt or threatened by your partner?[[br]] *__Friends/Family__: Are your friends and family aware of what is going on?[[br]] *__Emergency__: Do you have a safe place to go in an emergency?[[br]] [[br]] Evidence from randomized trials support a variety of interventions for women of childbearing age, including counseling, home visits, and mentoring support. Depending on the type of intervention, these services may be provided by clinicians, nurses, social workers, non-clinician mentors, or community workers. Counseling generally includes information on safety behaviors and community resources. In addition to counseling, home visits may include emotional support, education on problem solving strategies, and parenting support.Available Services
The Domestic Violence Hotline provides referrals for shelters, counseling etc.[[br]] 1-800-897-LINK (5465) National Domestic Violence Hotline[[br]] 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) Rape Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN) Hotline[[br]] 1-800-656-HOPE (4673)[[br]] [[br]] [[br]] The Utah Department of Health/Utah Domestic Violence Coalition provides a domestic violence screening tool for healthcare providers: "Clinical Guidelines for Assessment and Referral for Victims of Domestic Violence" which can be found at: [https://vipp.utah.gov/wp-content/uploads/DV-Healthcare-Manual.pdf].
Page Content Updated On 05/14/2024,
Published on 07/26/2024
