Intimate Partner Violence Victimization Among Women Veterans: Health, Health Care Service Use, and Opportunities for Intervention

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) victimization is a major source of morbidity and mortality for women. We know little about the IPV experiences among the growing population of women military veterans in the United States. To address this gap in knowledge, we conducted a retrospective review of medical records of 533 women veteran patients age 55 and younger at a Veterans Affairs (VA) medical center to identify the scope of IPV exposure and associated demographic, health, and health care service use characteristics. Lifetime IPV was documented in one-quarter of women veterans’ medical records and was associated with higher risk of many medical conditions and with more extensive health care service use. We provide recommendations for intervention through the Veterans Health Administration and for future research.

Keywords:

• Intimate partner violence
• domestic violence
• women veterans
• chart review

Acknowledgments

Dr. Dichter is a career development awardee, supported by the Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Health Administration, Health Service Research and Development Service (CDA #10-202). The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Veterans Affairs or the U.S. government. Material presented in this article was presented at the 2012 VA HSR&D/QUERI National Conference.