Newsletter: Winter 2005: Ask the Alliance

I recently changed physicians, and during an annual check-up my new doctor asked if I had been sexually assaulted.  She said she asks all her patients.  My other doctors never asked before.  Why do doctors ask these questions?  Does the Alliance recommend that doctors screen all their patients for sexual assault?

The Alliance does recommend that all doctors screen for sexual and intimate partner violence, in all their patients, at every visit.  So does the American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists (ACOG), the American Nurses Association (ANA), the Centers for Disease Control, the World Health Organization, Planned Parenthood, and other national and international health organizations.

If your doctor does not screen for sexual assault, he or she may be uncomfortable asking these questions, reluctant to discuss the issue because of his or her own history of victimization, or unaware of the benefits of such a screening (for survivors, being asked can be a validating or empowering experience in itself; for non-survivors, it can raise awareness of the issue).  If you feel comfortable doing so, you can recommend regular screening for sexual assault and intimate partner violence to your doctor.

The ANA states the need for routine assessment in order to "increase awareness and sensitivity to the [associated] health and mental health problems" and "reduce intentional injuries, the associated economic costs and psychological misery identified with violence against women."  ACOG recommends that doctors preface such screening with a statement such as: "because sexual violence is an enormous problem for women in this country and can affect a woman's health and well being, I now ask all my patients about exposure to violence and about sexual assault."

The Florida Council Against Sexual Violence's "Tell Me About It" Medical Awareness Initiative recommends a tool for screening for sexual assault, called SAVE: Screen all your patients for sexual assault; Ask direct questions in a non-judgmental way; Validate the patient's response; Evaluate, educate and refer.   The Council recommends screening when the patient is alone with a medical provider, in a private room with a closed door, and when she has her clothes on.  To read more about why, how and when to screen for sexual violence, visit them on the web at [1] http://www.fcasv.org/save.htm.

    Sincerely,
    The Alliance Staff

(Read [2] other articles in this series.)

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[1]: http://www.fcasv.org/save.htm
[2]: http://www.nycagainstrape.org/home/nycaasa/stage.nycagainstrape.org/newsletter_column_1.html
[3]: http://www.nycagainstrape.org/home/nycaasa/stage.nycagainstrape.org/newsletter_article_188.html
[4]: http://www.nycagainstrape.org/home/nycaasa/stage.nycagainstrape.org/newsletter_article_198.html

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