title: Intimate partner violence, partner notification, and expedited partner therapy: a qualitative study.
abstract: Over one-third of women experience intimate partner violence (IPV) in their lifetime. IPV increases the risk of infection and re-infection with sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The extent to which health care providers consider IPV when recommending partner notification and expedited partner therapy is unknown. The objective of this qualitative study was to understand health care providers' views on IPV and STIs when recommending partner treatment to patients with chlamydia. Using a purposive sampling strategy to include health care providers who treat young women at risk for chlamydia, 23 semi-structured, in-depth interviews were conducted. While some health care providers expressed concern for their patients' safety and believed assessing for IPV was needed before provision of expedited partner therapy, nearly a third had not considered the links between IPV and STIs. Strategies used by health care providers to assess for IPV did not include inquiry about specific behaviours related to IPV, STI risk, and sexual coercion. Many health care providers understand the risk for IPV in the setting of STI treatment, yet a significant portion of those interviewed failed to recognise the link between IPV and STIs. Provider education is necessary to increase knowledge and implement more effective inquiry and counselling about IPV to more safely recommend expedited partner therapy.
authors.affiliation: VA Women's Health, VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, Pittsburgh, PA, USA elian.rosenfeld@va.gov.
authors.forename: Elian A
authors.initials: EA
authors.lastname: Rosenfeld
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Marx
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Martha A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Terry
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Ronald
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Stall
authors.affiliation: Department of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Chelsea
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Pallatino
authors.affiliation: Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Sonya
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Borrero
authors.affiliation: Division of Adolescent Medicine, Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D016358:Contact Tracing; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007407:Interviews as Topic; D000066511:Intimate Partner Violence / Q000523:psychology*; D036301:Qualitative Research; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology*; D012749:Sexually Transmitted Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D013179:Spouse Abuse / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Intimate partner violence; expedited partner therapy; partner notification; sexual violence; sexually transmitted infections; treatment