Home | Browse by Day | or Program | Author Index

178943 Disseminating an intervention for women with histories of childhood sexual abuse

Sunday, October 26, 2008

Tina B. Henderson, PhD , Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Science, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
Gail E. Wyatt, PhD , Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Science, University of California, Los Angeles, CA
Dorothy Chin, PhD , Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Science, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
Introduction: An evidence-based sexual-risk reduction intervention integrating an HIV and trauma curriculum was disseminated to 10 HIV clinics/agencies with the purpose of: 1) training non-clinical staff on the effects of sexual trauma and HIV; 2) assisting clinics/agencies in implementing integrated this curriculum into their services; and 3) evaluating the intervention's efficacy on three psychological outcome variables, HIV knowledge, and condom use among clinic/agency clients.

Methods: Dissemination occurred in three phases: needs-assessments, staff training, and implementation. Agency visitations and bi-weekly facilitator meetings were conducted.

Results: Staff reported positive feedback, emphasizing the need for such training and intervention. Seventy-four African American and Latina HIV+ women with histories of child abuse, with mean age of 42 attended 12 weekly group sessions. Paired t-tests of pre- and post-surveys were conducted with significant improvements obtained for PTSD symptoms, CES-D (depression) symptoms, coping, and HIV knowledge.

Discussion: Findings underscore the importance of community-level interventions in improving the psychological health of women with histories of child sexual abuse and our ability to effectively disseminate the intervention to community-based organizations.

Learning Objectives:
Become familiar with the risk reduction behavior intervention Understand the importance of assessing a women's early sexual experiences Understand the process of disseminating such an intervention

Keywords: HIV Risk Behavior, Intervention

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I participated in conducting the research
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

See more of: Innovations in Family Violence Prevention
See more of: Family Violence Prevention Forum