Detecting Ongoing Intimate Partner Violence in the Emergency Department Using a Simple 4-Question Screen: The OVAT

We wanted to prospectively evaluate the use of a brief screening tool for ongoing intimate partner violence (IPV), the OVAT, and to validate this tool against the present Index of Spouse Abuse (ISA). The design was a prospective survey during randomized 4-hour shifts in an urban emergency department setting. The scale consists of four questions developed based on our previous work. The ISA was compared as the gold standard for detection of present (ongoing) IPV. Of 362 eligible patients presenting during 75 randomized 4-hour shifts, 306 (85%) completed the study. The prevalence of ongoing IPV using the OVAT was 31% (95% CI 26% to 36%). For the ISA, the prevalence was 20% (95% CI 16% to 25%). Compared with the ISA, the sensitivity of the OVAT in detecting ongoing IPV was 86%, specificity 83%, negative predictive value 96%, positive predictive value 56%, with an accuracy of 84%. In conclusion, four brief questions can detect ongoing IPV to aid in identifying the victim.

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Development of a Screen for Ongoing Intimate Partner Violence

Violence and Victims ◽

10.1891/vivi.2003.18.2.131 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 18 (2) ◽

pp. 131-141 ◽

Cited By ~ 42

Author(s):

Steve J. Weiss ◽

Amy A. Ernst ◽

Elaine Cham ◽

Todd G. Nick

Keyword(s):

Emergency Department ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Positive Predictive Value ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Predictive Value ◽

Spouse Abuse ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Positive Likelihood Ratio ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Survey Tool

A five-question Ongoing Abuse Screen (OAS) was developed to evaluate ongoing intimate partner violence. Our hypothesis was that the OAS was more accurate and more likely to reflect ongoing intimate partner violence than the AAS when compared to the Index of Spouse Abuse (ISA). The survey included the ISA, the OAS, and the AAS. During the busiest emergency department hours, a sampling of 856 patients completed all aspects of the survey tool. Comparisons were made between the two scales and the ISA. The accuracy, positive predictive value, and positive likelihood ratio were 84%, 58%, and 6.0 for the OAS and 59%, 33%, and 2.0 for the AAS. The OAS was more accurate, had a better positive predictive value, and was three times more likely to detect victims of ongoing intimate partner violence than the AAS. Because the OAS was still not accurate enough, we developed a new screen, based on the ISA, titled the Ongoing Violence Assessment Tool (OVAT).

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Intimate Partner Violence Documentation and Awareness in an Urban Emergency Department

Cureus ◽

10.7759/cureus.6493 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Janeske Vonkeman ◽

Paul Atkinson ◽

Jacqueline Fraser ◽

Rose McCloskey ◽

Adrian Boyle

Keyword(s):

Emergency Department ◽

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Urban Emergency Department

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Assessing Intimate Partner Violence in South Asian Women Using the Index of Spouse Abuse

Violence Against Women ◽

10.1177/1077801219842945 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 26 (6-7) ◽

pp. 697-711

Author(s):

Lenore Fitzsimmons Soglin ◽

Maya Ragavan ◽

Supriya Immaneni ◽

David F. Soglin

Keyword(s):

Intimate Partner Violence ◽

South Asian ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Spouse Abuse ◽

Screening Tool ◽

The United States ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Immigrant Population ◽

Asian Women ◽

South Asian Women

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) affects 21-40% of South Asian (SA) women in the United States. No screening tool has been validated in this population. This study sought to determine the validity of the Index of Spouse Abuse (ISA) as an IPV screening tool and to determine the prevalence of IPV among a SA immigrant population. Thirty-one percent of women screened positive on one or both ISA scales. The ISA-P and ISA-NP items were highly reliable as was the correlation between the ISA-P and ISA-NP scores. The ISA is a valid and reliable IPV screening tool in the SA immigrant population.

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