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

Abstract #114198

E. Danielle Rentz, MPH¹, Sandra L. Martin, PhD², Ronna L. Chan, MPH³, Catherine (Kay) Sanford, MSPH⁴, Jeanne Givens, MSW⁴, Lawrence L. Kupper, PhD⁵, and Mariana Garrettson, MPH⁶. (1) University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, Department of Epidemiology, CB#7435, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, (2) Dept of Maternal & Child Health, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, CB#7400, 401 Rosenau Hall, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7400, (3) Department of Maternal and Child Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Rosenau Hall, CB #7445, Chapel Hill, NC 27559, (4) Injury and Violence Prevention Branch, NC-Dept. Health and Human Services, Mail Service Center 1915, Raleigh, NC 27699-1915, (5) Department of Biostatistics, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina, CB# 7420, McGavran-Greenberg Hall, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7420, (6) Health Behavior Health Education, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, RR1 Box 55C, Union Dale, PA 18470, 570-222-4184, marianag@email.unc.edu

Purpose and Methods: To enhance the evidence base from which to develop and implement public health injury prevention activities concerning violence against women, this research estimates the prevalence of physical and sexual violence in a representative sample of NC women, and examines women's violence experiences in relation to negative mental health. Data were analyzed from 9,830 female respondents to the North Carolina Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, a statewide telephone survey. Results and Conclusions: Twenty-four percent of NC women experienced violence during adulthood (14.1% physical violence only, 2.9% sexual violence only, and 7.0% both physical and sexual violence). Women who experienced both physical and sexual violence were more likely than women who had not experienced violence to characterize their overall health as being "fair or poor," rather than "excellent, very good, or good" (26.7% vs. 18.8%; OR=1.6, 95% CI=1.2-2.1). The mean number days in the past month during which women characterized their mental health as not being good differed significantly between women with various violence experiences, with women who had experienced both physical and sexual violence having the greatest mean number of such days (7.5 days), followed by women who had experienced sexual violence only (5.2 days), women who had experienced physical violence only (4.9 days), and women who had not experienced violence (2.8 days). Similar findings were noted when violence was related to feeling sad, worried, and unrested. Thus, many NC women have experienced violence during adulthood, and these experiences are strongly linked to negative mental health.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify techniques and questions for ascertaining the prevalence of physical and sexual violence among adult women in a population-based survey, such as the BRFSS.
• Describe the prevalence of physical and sexual violence of adult women in North Carolina.
• Recognize that plans for injury and violence prevention may want to include mental health assessments for women who have experienced physical and sexual violence at any time during their adult lives.

Keywords: Violence, Women's Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

I wish to disclose that I have NO financial interests or other relationship with the manufactures of commercial products, suppliers of commercial services or commercial supporters.

Recorded presentation