Health indicators and intimate partner violence among women who are members of a managed care organization

Background. There have been no population-based studies estimating the prev alence of intimate partner violence (IPV) in an insured population. There i s also little information on how well routinely collected health status inf ormation predicts IPV risk. Many women now obtain health care from provider s who are members of a managed care organization (MCO). To justify efforts to routinely screen for IPV, it is essential to know the prevalence of IPV in this growing population and to identify correlates of IPV among female M CO members. Methods. A telephone survey with questions on health status, behavioral ris k factors, preventive services use, and the Conflict Tactics Scale was comp leted by 2,415 female members of a New Mexico MCO. Results. Overall, 13.5% of respondents reported experiencing major verbal a ggression and 6.7% reported experiencing physical aggression. Younger age, degree of sadness, and inability to handle stress, and a perception of a po orer general health status were significantly associated with major verbal aggression. Race/ethnicity, degree of sadness, and average number of drinks consumed at one sitting were significantly associated with physical aggres sion. Conclusions. There is a low but important annual prevalence of IPV among fe male members of a MCO that occurs across all variables studied. This inform ation is needed to develop appropriate screening protocols and intervention s in this population. (C) 1999 American Health Foundation and Academic Pres s.