Domestic Violence and Rape

No compilation of women's health care is complete without confronting domestic violence and sexual assault. Long recognized as a health care and physician issue, intimate partner violence continues to be one of the most frequent causes for injury and death to women in the United States and worldwide. According to the Commonwealth Fund survey in 1998, 31% of women reported either physical or sexual abuse from a husband or boyfriend. One in five American women also reported being raped during their lifetime. Careful assessment and universal screening are important tools for the primary care physician.