177459 Prevalence of Male Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse and Intimate Partner Violence against Pregnant Women in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico

Sunday, October 26, 2008

John Moraros, MD, PhD, MPH, CHES , Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Las Cruces, NM
Yelena Bird, MD, PhD, MPH , Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Las Cruces, NM
Larry K. Olsen, DrPH, CHES , Department of Health Science, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
Eduardo Maldonado Avila, MD , Universidad Autonoma de Ciudad Juárez, Ciudad Juárez, Mexico
Robert W. Buckingham, Dr PH , Department of Health Science, MSC 3HLS, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM
Background: Intimate partner violence (IPV) represents a significant, global public health problem that warrants attention from diverse disciplines. Pregnant women represent a vulnerable population, particularly when their intimate partner is under the influence of alcohol or other drugs (AOD) during the abusive act.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify the nature and extent of IPV perpetrated against pregnant women by male intimate partner offenders under the influence of AOD.

Methods: Data were collected over a two-month time period from all women who presented for prenatal care at a major hospital in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico.

Results: Of 215 women who completed the survey, 28.8% (n = 62) self-reported being the victim of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse and 61.3% (n = 38) of those specified that their male intimate partner was under the influence of AOD at the time of the abusive act. Significant relationships were found between female physical abuse (e.g., punching, suffering fractures or an abortion); sexual abuse (e.g., being forced to have sex), and emotional abuse (e.g., being made to feel guilty, ashamed, attacking the individual's self esteem) and their male intimate partner being under the influence of AOD (p<0.01).

Conclusion: In light of the possible link between IPV suffered by pregnant women and AOD abuse among their male intimates and perpetrators of violence, health care, substance abuse, and IPV service providers need to be cross-trained and made aware of the effect of AOD abuse as an antecedent of IPV.

Learning Objectives:
• Determine the nature of IPV perpetrated against pregnant women by male intimate partner offenders under the influence of AOD. • Determine the extent of IPV perpetrated against pregnant women by male intimate partner offenders under the influence of AOD. • Explain certain behavioral characteristics of AOD male users, which may lead to an increased incidence of IPV. • Understand the need for cross-training in the fields of IPV and AOD among health care professionals. • Increase awareness of the effects of AOD abuse as an antecedent of IPV.

Keywords: Violence, Women's Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: Primary Investigator
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.

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