Exploring intimate partner violence among women attending Malaysian primary care clinics

Othman, Sajaratulnisah and Yuen, Choo Wan and Mohd Zain, Norhasmah and Abdul Samad, Azah (2021) Exploring intimate partner violence among women attending Malaysian primary care clinics. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 36 (15-16). NP7920-NP7941. ISSN 0886-2605, DOI https://doi.org/10.1177/0886260519839426.

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Abstract

Victims of intimate partner violence (IPV) are frequent attendees at health care facilities. Although most literature on this subject focuses on developed or Western countries, there is a dearth of information from Asian countries. This study aims to estimate the prevalence of IPV among women attending urban primary care services in Malaysia and to identify the risk factors associated with IPV. Six out of 15 available public primary care clinics in the federal territory of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, were randomly selected. The sampling size for each clinic was conducted proportionate to the clinic's average daily patient attendance. A total of 882 women participated in this study via a self-administered questionnaire. We administered the women's experience with battering scale (WEB-scale) to estimate the prevalence of psychological violence and included a screening question for physical and sexual assault. The results showed that 22.0% of the women surveyed reported experiencing IPV. Ethnicity appears to be a significant predictor, with Chinese and Indian women reporting IPV at a higher rate than Malay women. Women with IPV are more likely to come from lower income households, have witnessed parental IPV, receive less social support, and have poorer psychological well-being. Our findings indicate that the prevalence of IPV among women attending urban public primary care clinics is high. Health care providers should pay close attention during clinical encounters for any sign of IPV, particularly among those presenting with risk factors.

Item Type: Article
Funders: UNSPECIFIED
Uncontrolled Keywords: Domestic violence; Battered women; Intimate partner violence; Malaysia
Subjects: R Medicine > R Medicine (General)
Divisions: Faculty of Medicine
Depositing User: Ms. Juhaida Abd Rahim
Date Deposited: 04 Mar 2022 03:34
Last Modified: 04 Mar 2022 03:34
URI: http://eprints.um.edu.my/id/eprint/26467

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