Sexual violence and mental health services: a call to action

Women's Experiences Accessing Mental Health Care in Australia After Sexual Violence in Adulthood

In Australia, at least one in every five women has experienced sexual violence since age 15. Research consistently links sexual violence with poor mental health, persisting long after the crisis period. Trauma-informed mental health support is therefore critical. This article draws on interviews with 29 women who had experienced sexual violence to understand their experiences accessing mental health services in Australia. Our findings suggest that, constrained by a biomedical model of care, mental health practitioners' understanding of trauma generally, and sexual violence particularly, may be lacking. Further, women struggle to navigate a "maze" of services.

Healers that hurt: a scoping review of media reports of cases of rape in healthcare settings

BACKGROUND

Sexual assault occurring within healthcare settings represents a significant breach of public trust. This scoping review aimed to highlight the profile of people raped, those who committed the rape within the health facilities, and the legal actions taken to resolved cases.

METHODS

Media-reported data on incidents of rape in healthcare settings were collected. The search was conducted in May and June 2023, focusing on English-language publications with accessible full texts. Reports that lacked information on the survivors or incidents that occurred outside of healthcare settings were excluded. Descriptive statistics were used to summarize the categories of the collected publications, and graphical representations were employed for visualization purposes.

RESULTS

A total of 62 cases were retrieved, originating from Africa (n = 17; 27.4%), Europe (n = 14; 22.6%), Southeast Asia (n = 14; 22.6%), the Americas (n = 11; 17.7%), the Western Pacific Region (n = 5; 8.1%) and Eastern Mediterranean region (n = 1; 1.6%). In addition, 69 individuals were implicated in 59 cases. They were 31 doctors (44.9%), 17 (24.6%) nurses, four (5.8%) nurse/healthcare assistants, three (4.3%) cleaners/ward boy, two (2.9%) traditional medical doctors, and two (2.9%) security guards. Others included six (8.7%) staff members without designations and one (1.4%) ambulance driver. All perpetrators were male, ranging in age from 22 to 67 years. There were 66 victims identified in the 62 cases with age ranging from 2 to 92 years. Except for one case, all victims were female, and all but one case were patients. Most assaults occurred in consulting rooms/clinics (n = 21; 31.8%), 16 (24.2%) happened under sedation, and six (9.1%) were repeatedly raped, Survivors typically reported the cases the police (n = 12; 19.4%), family/friends (n = 11; 17.7%) or to hospital authorities (n = 10; 16.1%). Out of the 69 perpetrators, 19 (30.6%) were imprisoned with sentences ranging from 12 months to an indefinite period and one (1.6%) received a death sentence.

CONCLUSION

The raping of patients by healthcare providers within healthcare settings calls for urgent and extensive measures. Stakeholders in healthcare management need to prioritize raising awareness about the problem, implement robust prevention and reporting strategies, and create healthcare environments that are safe, respectful, and supportive for all individuals seeking care.

Sex differences in experiences of multiple traumas and mental health problems in the UK Biobank cohort

PURPOSE

Experiences of reported trauma are common and are associated with a range of mental health problems. Sex differences in how reported traumas are experienced over the life course in relation to mental health require further exploration.

METHODS

157,358 participants contributed data for the UK Biobank Mental Health Questionnaire (MHQ). Stratified Latent Class Analysis (LCA) was used to analyse combinations of reported traumatic experiences in males and females separately, and associations with mental health.

RESULTS

In females, five trauma classes were identified: a low-risk class (58.6%), a childhood trauma class (13.5%), an intimate partner violence class (12.9%), a sexual violence class (9.1%), and a high-risk class (5.9%). In males, a three-class solution was preferred: a low-risk class (72.6%), a physical and emotional trauma class (21.9%), and a sexual violence class (5.5%). In comparison to the low-risk class in each sex, all trauma classes were associated with increased odds of current depression, anxiety, and hazardous/harmful alcohol use after adjustment for covariates. The high-risk class in females and the sexual violence class in males produced significantly increased odds for recent psychotic experiences.

CONCLUSION

There are sex differences in how reported traumatic experiences co-occur across a lifespan, with females at the greatest risk. However, reporting either sexual violence or multiple types of trauma was associated with increased odds of mental health problems for both males and females. Findings emphasise the public mental health importance of identifying and responding to both men and women's experiences of trauma, including sexual violence.

Prevalence of mental disorders in people living with type 1 diabetes: A systematic literature review and meta-analysis

OBJECTIVE

Type 1 diabetes is associated with increased prevalence of individual categories of mental disorders. We aimed to systematically synthesise the prevalence of all the different categories of mental disorders to estimate the overall burden of psychiatric morbidity in the type 1 diabetes population.

METHOD

The electronic database of OVID was searched, and retrieved papers were screened for eligibility by two independent reviewers. Data were extracted using a standardised data extraction form and the quality of included papers was assessed. Where possible, comparisons with control groups without type 1 diabetes were made. Prevalence data were synthesised into Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders version 5 categories, a narrative data-synthesis, and a subsequent meta-analysis where possible was conducted for mental disorder categories.

RESULTS

Thirty-eight articles were included. Depressive, anxiety, and feeding and eating disorders were the most examined mental disorders. Studies utilising diagnostic interviews reported higher prevalence of mental disorders than in studies utilising clinical registers, with an up to 24-fold difference respectively. In studies with a control group, the prevalence for nearly every mental disorder were increased for the type 1 diabetes samples.

CONCLUSIONS

There appears to be a high prevalence of mental disorders and associated need among people with type 1 diabetes, although the quality of research needs to improve.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION

This protocol was submitted for registration with the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO) (CRD42020221530).

A service evaluation of current practices in the assessment of mental-health and referral for support following disclosure of sexual violence

Sexual violence (SV) has significant impacts on physical, social and psychological wellbeing, with associated mental illness and suicide. Despite no specific guidelines regarding mental health and SV, recommendations suggest all patients should have the opportunity to discuss their mental health and be offered referrals for support. A service evaluation was performed at a large Sexual and Reproductive Health Service (SRHS) with n = 179 patient records reviewed between 30/07/2021 to 01/10/21, who had disclosed SV including n = 83 referred from Sexual Assault Referral Centres (SARC). Patient exclusions included duplicates and non-attendances. Data on patient demographics, mental health assessment and referral services were analysed. Referral services included Independent Sexual Violence Advisors (ISVAs), a specialist third sector organisation Rape and Sexual Violence Project (RSVP), and an inhouse specialist SV clinic, Abuse Survivors Clinic (ASC). Demographic analysis demonstrated that 43% of cases were aged over 25 years, 47% were 18-25 and 10% under 18. Females comprised 85% of cases. Mental health history was documented in 91% of SARC referrals, compared to 77% of patients who directly attended SRHS. Current mental health was assessed in 83% of SARC referral patients, compared to 75% of direct SRHS patients. RSVP was offered to 81% of patients, more than any other service. ISVA was offered to 40% of patients, and ASC was offered to 3% of patients. In total, 11% of patients were offered no service referrals. Findings suggest improvements should be made to ensure all patients have discussions around their mental health and are offered support services following SV disclosure. Further research is required to determine whether these changes improve patient outcomes.

Sexual violence perpetrated in adolescence and adult phase: analysis of reported cases in the capital of Rondônia

Abstract Objective to analyze the epidemiological profile of reported cases of sexual violence perpetrated against women in Porto Velho, Rondônia. Method a quantitative, descriptive cross-sectional study, including cases of violence against women aged 12 years or older registered in the Notifiable Diseases Information System from 2010 to 2018. Results statistical significance was found among women who suffered sexual violence in relation to education (p=0.000); marital status (p=0.000); if they were pregnant women (p=0.026); if the aggressor had a relationship/degree of kinship as spouse/boyfriend (p=0.000); ex-spouse/boyfriend (p=0.002); friends/acquaintances (p=0.015); unknown (p=0.000); with suspected alcohol use (p=0.001) and for the place of occurrence (p=0.000), if it occurred other times (p=0.000); procedure performed (abortion provided for by law (p=0.001), emergency contraception (p=0.001), material collection (p= 0.012) and prophylaxis (p=0.000)); and means used in aggression (body strength/beating (p=0.000), threat (p=0.031), sharp object (p=0.000), firearm (p=0.000), hanging (p=0.000) and blunt object (p=0.019)). Conclusion and implications for practice sexual violence was evidenced as prevalent in adolescence, regardless of age group, and the type of aggression was rape. The contribution will enable efforts to be directed to prevent this disease in groups of younger ages in different forms of relationships.

Violência sexual perpetrada na adolescência e fase adulta: análise dos casos notificados na capital de Rondônia

Resumo Objetivo analisar o perfil epidemiológico dos casos notificados de violência sexual perpetrada contra as mulheres em Porto Velho, Rondônia. Método estudo quantitativo, descritivo, transversal, incluindo os casos de violência contra mulheres com idade igual ou superior a 12 anos registrados no Sistema de Informação de Agravos de Notificação no período de 2010 a 2018. Resultados verificou-se significância estatística entre mulheres que sofreram violência sexual em relação à escolaridade (p=0,000); situação conjugal/civil (p=0,000); se eram gestantes (p=0,026); se o agressor possuía vínculo/grau de parentesco como cônjuge/namorado (p=0,000); ex-cônjuge/namorado (p=0,002); amigos/conhecidos (p=0,015); desconhecido (p=0,000); suspeita do uso de álcool (p=0,001); local da ocorrência (p=0,000), se ocorreu outras vezes (p=0,000); procedimento realizado (aborto previsto em lei (p=0,001), contracepção de emergência (p=0,001), coleta de material (p=0,012) e profilaxia (p=0,000)); e meio usado na agressão (força corporal/espancamento (p=0,000), ameaça (p=0,031), objeto perfurocortante (p=0,000), arma de fogo (p=0,000), enforcamento (p=0,000) e objeto contundente (p=0,019)). Conclusão e implicações na prática evidenciou-se a violência sexual como prevalente na adolescência, independentemente da faixa etária, e o tipo de agressão foi o estupro. A contribuição possibilitará direcionar esforços na prevenção desse agravo em grupos de idades mais jovens nas diferentes formas de relacionamentos.

Health professionals' experiences of providing care for women survivors of sexual violence in psychiatric inpatient units

Background

Survivors of sexual violence, who are predominantly women, commonly access mental health services. Psychiatric inpatient units in Australia are predominately mixed gender and may further retraumatise these women. Sexual violence is under-recognised by mental health professionals and there is a lack of adequate policy or direction for mental health service services. To date, only a small amount of research has focused on health professionals’ experiences of providing trauma-informed care to women in psychiatric settings, with most studies focused on specific practices or interventions. Qualitative data is particularly lacking on this topic. This is a critical gap in the knowledge given that health professionals are key to detecting and addressing victimisation. The aim of this study was to gain an in-depth understanding of healthcare professionals’ experiences and perceptions in providing care to women who are survivors of sexual violence in psychiatric inpatient units.

Methods

This qualitative study utilised semi-structured interviews with 40 health professionals recruited from four psychiatric inpatient units within a large Australian public mental health organisation. Data were examined using thematic analysis.

Results

Three main typologies were developed to describe participants’ experiences of the care provided to women; 1) Dismissing and denying; 2) Acknowledging but unprepared; 3) Empathising but despairing.

Discussion

Gender, professional training, adherence to the biomedical model, and level of experience influenced health professionals’ experiences.

Conclusions

Health professionals in this study held varying attitudes towards female consumers and responses to sexual violence. Our findings suggest the need to address individual staff perception and promote trauma-informed and gender-sensitive care across all disciplines, genders, and levels of experience.