Back to Annual Meeting Page		American Public Health Association 133rd Annual Meeting & Exposition December 10-14, 2005 Philadelphia, PA

Abstract #112266

Emily A. Bobrow, MPH and Melissa C. Roche, MA. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 105 Elmwood Circle, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, 919-932-1552, ebobrow@email.unc.edu

Approximately 1.5 million women in the US are physically or sexually assaulted by an intimate partner each year, and one in three is injured as a result of intimate partner violence (IPV). Qualitative data was collected with a view to improve health services for women who experience IPV, including universal screening. Semi-structured interviews with clients at an urban domestic violence shelter aimed to understand how women felt being asked about IPV in the health care setting, under what circumstances they chose to disclose, and what they liked and disliked about behavior from providers. Semi-structured interviews with emergency room nurses explored their experiences asking about and responding to IPV, and their perceptions of screening practices. A hospital record review was also conducted for IPV cases disclosed during routine screening in a two-month period in 2004. The voices of women and nurses, along with data from the record review, were used to create a participatory performance entitled The Biggest True Soap Opera in the World. The presentation style has allowed people to connect and relate with the lives and the perspectives of the women and nurses interviewed. The research process is an example of how qualitative research results on IPV can be shared with communities to provoke thoughts and reflections and facilitate discussions that lead towards institutional change.

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