IN THE NEWS

Congressional Briefing Held to address WHO Findings on Sexual and Domestic Violence and
Upcoming International Violence Against Women Act

In a critically important study released late last year, the World Health Organization (WHO) found that domestic and sexual violence are serious public health problems worldwide. Based on interviews with 24,000 women around the world, it found that one-fifth to three-quarters of women had experienced physical or sexual violence since age 15, with most of it inflicted by male partners. The World Health Organization shared the findings of its Multi-country Study on Women’s Health and Domestic Violence against Women with congressional leaders and staff in May. The study found that intimate partner violence is common and its consequences – particularly for women’s health – can be devastating. They include HIV/AIDS, with women now the fastest growing group of victims of the epidemic. Sexual violence and an inability to negotiate safer sex greatly increase women’s vulnerability. Pregnancy is also a time of enormous risk, with violence often continuing or escalating. The landmark study offers recommendations to address domestic violence and other forms of violence against women. The Family Violence Prevention Fund, Global Health Council and PATH co-sponsored the congressional briefing and urged immediate steps to treat domestic violence as the global health issue it is. Family Violence Prevention Fund President Esta Soler urged lawmakers to support an International Violence Against Women Act (I-VAWA), which will be introduced next year. “We unveiled an immensely promising strategy recently when more than 30 groups came together to begin a campaign for an international Violence Against Women Act,” she said. “This legislation will, for the first time, commit our government to end violence against women globally. The I-VAWA campaign is co-chaired by Women’s Edge Coalition and Amnesty International USA. The new legislation it supports will work with existing infrastructures by incorporating anti-violence components into existing programs, and funding new programs that can help end violence against women around the world. It will also include training and sensitization programs for judges and judicial officials, raising awareness of gender violence in the workplace and solidifying women’s access to reproductive health service. One initial focus will be to incorporate domestic violence and sexual assault screening into HIV/AIDS programs.
WHO’s Multi-country Study on Women’s Health and Domestic Violence against Women is available at www.who.int/gender/violence/who_multicountry_study/summary_report/en/index.html

Drug Use Affects Rates Of Sexual Assault, Study Shows

Willing or unwilling drug use increases a woman’s risk of sexual assault, and drugs are a factor in many sexual assaults, a new study found. Sixty-two percent of reported sexual assault cases in the study involved drugs and five percent of victims were given Rohypnol, the “date-rape” drug. Research also found that 35 percent of women were likely to have been impaired at the time of their assault. Drug-facilitated sexual assault (DFSA) includes substances given to victims without their knowledge as well as substances taken voluntarily by victims that can impair their decision making ability. More often DFSA was a result of the victims own drug use, rather than drugging by a perpetrator. Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago examined 144 subjects (sexual assault complainants) at clinics in Texas, California, Minnesota and Washington State. Subjects were age 18 to 56, and voluntarily participated in the study by answering a questionnaire about the alleged assault and disclosing any drugs they had taken. The subjects were then tested for about 45 drugs that have been previously detected in sexual assault victims or that can impair judgment. Four in five reported knowing their assailant. Authors concluded that there is a strong need for toxicological analysis in sexual assault cases, and that nursing staff should be trained to take a truthful drug history. Lead authors of the study are Adam Negrusz, Ph.D., Matthew Juhascik, Ph.D., and R.E. Gaensslen, Ph.D.

Alaskan Community Leaders Meet to Improve Health Care Response to Domestic Violence

Some 60 national leaders from 17 states representing Indian Health Service, tribal and urban health care facilities, and domestic violence agencies held an unprecedented meeting in Juneau in May to identify strategies that will strengthen the health care system’s response to domestic violence against Native women. Leaders from Ketchikan Indian Corporation’s innovative pilot program shared their experiences providing culturally relevant training, implementing domestic violence screening protocols, and building community awareness. “This work could not be more urgent,” said Family Violence Prevention Fund (FVPF) Managing Director for Health Debbie Lee. “Health care providers are in a unique position to help victims of abuse by detecting domestic violence and providing referrals and support. This is a wonderful meeting at which the nation’s top experts are learning how to share their successes with the broader community. We are making real progress in identifying strategies that show promise for keeping American Indian and Alaska Native women safe from domestic and sexual violence.” The FVPF, Mending the Sacred Hoop Technical Assistance Project, Sacred Circle and the Alaska Network on Domestic Violence & Sexual Assault co-sponsored the event. “This project has identified many strategies that are enormously promising,” said Lynn Hoefer, Domestic Violence Advocate with the Ketchikan Indian Community Tribal Health Clinic.
More information on the project is available from Anna Marjavi at 415/252-8900.

California Releases Women’s Health Report

The California Department of Health Services, Office of Women’s Health compiled a report of the results from the California Women’s Health Survey (CWHS) for a seven year period (1997-2003). The survey is conducted annually via telephone from a random sample of women, 18 years of age or older. The report includes topics such as tobacco and alcohol use, domestic violence, body weight, nutrition, and sexual behavior. The results indicated that California is making progress on achieving better health outcomes.
For full report go to: http://www.dhs.ca.gov/director/owh/owh_main/cwhs/ wmns_hlth_survey/97-03_findings/CWHS_Findings_97-03.pdf

Intimate Partner Violence, PTSD, and Adverse Health Outcomes

The Journal of Interpersonal Violence recently published an article which explores the high incidence of adverse mental health effects as a result of intimate partner violence (IPV). Posttraumatic stress disorder is associated with many of the behavioral and psychological changes as a result of exposure to IPV. The article focuses on recent findings and methodologies which address exposure to IPV and ways in which to treat and improve the health of individuals who have been affected by it.
See Abstract: http://jiv.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/21/7/955

Co-occurring Maternal Conditions and Behavior Problems in Children

The Archives of General Psychiatry published a May 2006 article relating the risk of behavioral problems of children at three years of age, with parents reporting conditions in mental health, substance use and domestic violence. The risk of behavioral problems in these children increased independent of prenatal or sociodemographic factors. The authors explain the importance of the health care provider’s role in recognizing the health effects that extend through generations rather than the patient alone.
See abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd= Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=Abstract&list_uids=16651512

Study Shows Long-term effects of violence against women

The June issue of American Journal of Preventive Medicine published a study which recognizes the impact of domestic violence on women’s physical and mental health. The study provides the results of a survey from more than 3400 women and found that over 40 percent had been exposed to some form of intimate partner violence. Women exposed to violence recently were more likely to show symptoms of depression, poor health, and lower social functioning than women with no such history. The study also highlights that health care providers who provide referrals and routinely discuss with their patients the issues of domestic violence and the impact on health might lower rates of domestic violence.
See abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=16704937&dopt=Abstract

Lowering the Threshold for Discussions of Domestic Violence

The Archives of Internal Medicine recently published an article that evaluated the effect of computer screening on the communication between health care providers and their patients in the Emergency Room setting. Randomly, female patients between the ages of 18-65 participated in a self-administered computer based health risk assessment. Following the assessment, the patient had an audiotaped session with the health care provider where the rates of domestic violence disclosure and discussion were measured. The results showed that encounters with a health care provider prompt regarding potential DV risk led to discussions about 48% of the time. The results also found that inquiries about and disclosures of abuse correlated with higher patient satisfaction with care.
See abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt= Abstract&list_uids=16717173&itool=iconabstr&query_hl=5&itool=pubmed_docsum

The Right to a Medical Interpreter

The article discusses the congressional dispute around the need for medical interpretation. Before President Bill Clinton left office in 2000, he signed an executive order that required all recipients of federal funds including health care providers and government agencies to provide free interpretation and written translation for any non-English speaking clients. However, according to advocates for language access who are often following up with any client complaints around their inability to obtain interpretation or translation, investigators rarely mandate compliance.
Full article: http://news.newamericamedia.org/news/view_article.html?article_id=a2ccf312598b4820d1d0ac25265fc91e

American Roulette: Murder-Suicide in the US

In a recent study developed and published by the Violence Policy Center in Washington, DC., it was found that more than 10 murder-suicides occur each week in the United States. The study discusses the different types of traumatic deaths, specifically that of murder-suicide. The analysis includes trends and statistics around murder-suicide, often involving an intimate partner as well as factors that drive murder-suicide in the United States.
Full article: http://www.vpc.org/studies/amroul2006.pdf

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Two New Research Reports from www.vawnet.org

The Psychological Consequences of Sexual Trauma by Nicole P. Yuan, Mary P. Koss, and Mirto Stone (March 2006)
"This document provides a review and critique of current trends in mental health assessment and treatment for sexual trauma survivors with an emphasis on early intervention. Treatment approaches are restricted to psychotherapy". http://www.vawnet.org/SexualViolence/ Research/VAWnetDocuments/AR_PsychConsequences.pdf

Marital Rape: New Research and Directions by Raquel Kennedy Bergen (February 2006)
"This document provides an overview of the research on marital rape including a brief legal history of marital rape; discussion of its occurrence; summary of the effects; and an analysis of practitioners' intervention with marital rape survivors."
http://www.vawnet.org/DomesticViolence/ Research/VAWnetDocs/AR_MaritalRapeRevised.pdf

Patient-Centered Guide to Implementing Language Access Services in Healthcare Organizations

A Patient-Centered Guide to Implementing Language Access Services in Healthcare Organizations is now available from OMH. The guide is intended to help healthcare organizations implement effective language access services to meet the needs of their limited-English-proficient patients, and increase their access to health care.
For more information go to: http://www.omhrc.gov/templates/content.aspx? ID=4375&lvl=2&lvlID=107

Incorporating Youth Development Principles into Adolescent Health Programs: A Guide for State-Level Practitioners and Policy Makers

The Healthy People 2010 National Initiative to Improve Adolescent health by 2010 released a new Guide for States and Communities. The guide takes a youth development approach and practitioners and policy makers are urged to have a focus on the strengths and developmental needs of adolescents rather than just their risks and health adverse behaviors. State-funded programs can find relevancy in the paper although it is specific to addressing youth development in state adolescent programs.
See full paper: http://www.forumfyi.org/Files/AdolescentHealth.pdf

How Schools Can Help Students Recover from Traumatic Experiences

This paper identifies programs which support students who display behavioral and physiological changes that result from exposure to trauma such as violence, abuse, natural disasters and acts of terrorism. The programs’ goals are to provide advocacy and support to promote long term healing and recovery based on the traumas they experienced.
See full paper: http://www.rand.org/pubs/working_papers/WR377/

INTERNSHIPS, REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS and MANUSCRIPTS

Soliciting Papers on Health Disparities and Violence Prevention

The Family Violence Prevention and Health Practice ejournal invites you to submit brief reports and articles on programs addressing family violence in the health care and public health setting. Our next issue looks at Decreasing Disparities and Violence Prevention. We are soliciting brief reports and feature articles that explore the intersection between efforts to reduce health disparities in health outcomes for poor, minority and other underserved people and violence prevention initiatives. We would like to highlight model programs that are integrating violence prevention into health disparities initiatives and research that explores the differential burden of violence and chronic health problems among adults and children, what contributes to these disparities and what strategies can be used to identify, manage and prevent violence and co-occurring chronic health issues in culturally accessible ways.

To submit a program brief report, please provide an electronic copy of a description of the program including the goals and objectives, services provided, target population(s), funding sources and a synopsis of any data, evaluation, and/or research from the program. If evaluation findings are available for your program, include a description of the evaluation design, outcome measures, and recommendations. Contact information should include name, title, phone number, and e-mail address. Full length articles submitting original data should be organized by standard scientific sections and subheadings as follows: Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. Reviews and other types of articles where these headings may not be appropriate should use descriptive subheadings.

For further information about submitting manuscripts, contact Julie Varghese at Julie@endabuse.org.

OVW Technical Assistance Program

The U.S. Department of Justice, Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) has announced that it is seeking concept papers under the Office on Violence Against Women Technical Assistance Program. The primary purpose of the OVW TA Program is to provide direct assistance to grantees and sub-grantees to enhance the success of local projects they are implementing with VAWA grant funds. In addition, OVW is focused on building the capacity of criminal justice and victim services organizations to respond effectively to sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking and to foster partnerships between organizations that have not traditionally worked together to address violence against women, such as faith- and community- based organizations.
For more information go to: http://www.usdoj.gov/ovw/fy2007finalcallforconceptpapers.pdf

AIDS and Behavior Special Supplement Issue on Housing and HIV/AIDS

AIDS and Behavior seeks submissions for a special supplement issue of the journal on the role of housing with regard to prevention, consequences, social impact, and response to HIV/AIDS. The goal of the special issue is to bring together state-of-the-art research on housing, homelessness, and HIV, and analyses of program and policy implications of research findings. Deadline for manuscript submissions: August 1, 2006 For questions about the issue please contact Special Editor, Angela Aidala, PhD, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, at 212.305.7023 or aaa1@columbia.edu
For more information go to: http://www.springer.com/cda/content/document/ cda_downloaddocument/CFP_10461_310506.pdf?SGWID=0-0-45-284892-p35538888

Special Issue of The Journal of Empirical Research on Human Research Ethics (JERHRE)- Recovering Respect for Persons & Beneficence: Research Involving Survivors of Violence and Trauma

The special issue of JERHRE will include papers that present, examine, and explore evidence that suggests or demonstrates whether research on survivors of violence and trauma is re-traumatizing or therapeutic, including presentations of the ways in which research can be designed so as to embody the ethical requirements of the principles of respect for persons and beneficence. Quantitative, qualitative, and case-study papers are welcome as are methodological papers (e.g., that focus on evaluation of whether vulnerability persists, or whether research is beneficial or harmful to participants). Topics: Manuscripts may address, but are not limited to the following topics: family violence, sexual assault, abandonment, community and state violence, warfare, natural disasters, forced migrations, and severe accidents.
Please address inquiries to: Mary Simmerling, PhD, Special Issue Editor, mcs@uchicago.edu Telephone: 773-834-5805 Fax: 773-834-8700

WHO Foundation: Women Helping Others Accepting Grant Applications

Grants are provided to organizations serving women and/or children in the United States and Puerto Rico. Specific projects and programs addressing health, education, and social service needs are the foundation's priority. The foundation recognizes the value of new programs created to respond to changing needs and will consider funding projects of an original or pioneering nature within an existing organization. In order to qualify for funding, organizations must have 501(c)(3) nonprofit status under the U.S. Internal Revenue Code and be qualified to receive deductible charitable contributions. Organizations that have received a WHO Foundation grant in the past should wait three years before applying again.
Deadline: September 12, 2006
For more information go to: http://fconline.foundationcenter.org/pnd/10002943/whofoundation
For additional RFPs in Women, visit: http://foundationcenter.org/pnd/rfp/cat_women.jhtml

OVC Professional Development Scholarships are available!

Scholarships provide up to $1,000 for individuals and up to $5,000 for multidisciplinary teams of victim service professionals seeking continuing education opportunities. To determine whether you or your team are eligible for a scholarship, visit the OVC.
For more information go to: http://www.ovcttac.org/calendar/training.cfm.

EVENTS/CONFERENCES

DATE HAS CHANGED! 2007 National Conference on Health and Domestic Violence

Pre-conference Institutes: March 15, 2007
Conference: March 16 - March 17, 2007
Now Accepting Abstracts! Deadline for Abstract Submission: July 28, 2006
Registration Opens Online: September 30, 2006 at http://www.endabuse.org/ Location: Grand Hyatt San Francisco, California, USA

The 4th Biennial National Conference on Health and Domestic Violence aims to advance the health care system's response to domestic violence. The conference attracts the nation's leading medical, public health and family violence experts from across the U.S. with increased international participation. Workshops and plenary sessions highlight the latest research and most innovative clinical responses to domestic violence, with a focus on the work being done by physicians, physician assistants, dentists, nurses, nurse midwives, mental and behavioral health providers, social workers, domestic violence experts, and others. To submit an abstract online click here. We strongly encourage all applicants submit abstracts online, however if you do not have internet access, proposals may be sent by U.S. mail once confirmed. For more information, please contact Julie Varghese at Julie@endabuse.org, phone (415) 252-8900.

Organizing for Collective Power: National Coalition Against Domestic Violence

The National Coalition Against Domestic Violence (NCADV) will hold its 12th National Domestic Violence Conference at the Omni Hotel at CNN Center on July 9-12, 2006 in Atlanta, GA. NCADV will focus on systemic issues facing the movement to end domestic violence such as welfare and poverty, global violence against women, children who witness domestic violence, men as allies, the connections to oppression and racism. workshops under the Research Track include The Health Sector Response: Organizing the Health Sector to End Violence Against Women
For more information, go to: www.ncadv.org

Womencare Counseling Center's 1st Annual Conference

Disorders of Love: From Everyday Disconnection to Traumatic Betrayal will be held on October 26 - 27, 2006 at the Doubletree Hotel & Conference Center, Chicago-North Shore in Skokie, Illinois. The conference will explore the minor and predictable injuries in love as well as the traumatic betrayals that can impact one's world view, sense of self, and safety. On day one, internationally renowned scholar Carol Gilligan will help the audience understand the complexities of love from the perspective of gender, voice, and relationship. On day two, three nationally known experts in trauma will present on traumatic betrayals of love and strategies for repair. Each afternoon, skilled clinicians will offer training on therapeutic techniques and issues relating to love, connection, and disconnection.
For more information go to: www.disordersoflove.com

Mental Health Response to Mass Violence and Trauma: Office for Victims of Crime

Every year the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) sponsors training workshops for victim service professionals. From October 3-5, 2006 they will host a workshop entitled "Mental Health Response to Mass Violence and Trauma" in Phoenix, Arizona. Workshops are designed to build practical technical skills and enhance knowledge of victim service issues. The Fall/Winter schedule offers several new workshops as well as favorites from years past.
For more information go to: http://www.ovcttac.org/calendar/training.cfm

Violence Prevention: Promoting Health Communities: Morehouse School of Medicine

Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) and the Hamilton Fish Institute are proud to announce a conference entitled Violence Prevention: Promoting Health Communities to be held from September 25- 26th, 2006 in Atlanta, Georgia. The Hamilton Fish Institute on School and Community Violence is a national resource for the research and development of school violence prevention strategies. The conference aims to provide training and increase awareness among practitioners and community stakeholders about violence prevention and the new strategies that are rapidly growing in programs across the United States. Local and national leaders will be present to talk about successful activities and programs in their communities to deter violence.
For more information go to: http://www.msm.edu/ViolenceConference/Violence.htm or call Dr. Katherine Erwin for additional information at (404) 756-5278 or Dr. Kisha Braithwaite at (404) 756-8923, Monday through Friday, between the hours of 9:00 am and 5:00.

Bridging the Gap: Reaching Across Cultures and Disciplines: Colorado Coalition Against Sexual Assault

"Bridging the Gap: Reaching Across Cultures and Disciplines" will be held on September 5-7th, 2006 in Denver, CO. The focus for the 2006 Sexual Assault Conference is two-fold; 1) reaching underserved victims with prevention and effective intervention and 2) how to create a sustainable inclusive organizations. This can include, but is not limited to, trafficking, people with disabilities, elderly, rural communities, bi- and monolingual communities, the homeless, LGBTQ, immigrant populations, incarcerated individuals, sex workers, etc.
For more information, go to: http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij/events/nij_conference2006.html

Health e-News is a monthly electronic news digest focusing on health care and domestic violence policy, research, prevention and advocacy. Health e-News is available in both text and html formats. To subscribe Click Here.

We encourage you to use Health e-News to share news, views, and experiences concerning your projects and activities on addressing domestic violence as a health care issue. To post an announcement or ask a question, send an e-mail to HealthE-News@endabuse.org. The digest is facilitated by Julie Varghese, julie@endabuse.org, with the Family Violence Prevention Fund.

Thank you for your ongoing commitment to end domestic violence!

Be sure to visit our website http://endabuse.org/health to learn more about our programs, products, and campaigns!