Emergency evaluation and intervention with female victims of rape and other violence

Given the high prevalence of crime within the general population and the in creased rates of victimization among those seeking medical care, profession als who work in emergency departments, primary care medical facilities, or mental health settings need to be prepared to address physical and psycholo gical problems related to sexual and physical assault. In this paper, inter personal violence prevalence studies are reviewed in terms of study design and findings for sexual assault and physical assault. Common injuries follo wing both forms of assault are documented, followed by a review of long-ter m medical outcomes. In addition to a review of physical health outcomes, pr imary psychological effects of violence are also reviewed. Strategies with which to screen for interpersonal violence in the medical setting are offer ed, and issues related to mandatory reporting are summarized. Interventions for assault victims that can be implemented in the medical setting are out lined. and a new hospital-based treatment for victims of rape is described. (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.