Screening for Domestic Violence and Childhood Exposure in Families Seeking Care at an Urban Pediatric Clinic

Received 3 August 2007; received in revised form 17 December 2007; accepted 25 January 2008.

In a survey of 133 caregivers in a pediatric clinic, 30 women (23%) disclosed domestic violence, with 2 reporting coercive control but not physical violence. Seventeen women stated that a child had been exposed as well. Domestic violence is not a “private” adult problem; further study of an appropriate pediatric-based screener is needed.

Abbreviations: CTS1, Conflict Tactics Scale 1, DV, Domestic violence, WEB, Women's Experience with Battering scale

a Division of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD

b Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD

c Johns Hopkins School of Nursing, Baltimore, MD.

Reprint requests: Megan H. Bair-Merritt, MD, MSCE, 200 N Wolfe Street, Office 2021, Baltimore, MD 21287.

None of the authors has any potential, perceived, or actual conflicts of interest to disclose.

PII: S0022-3476(08)00074-7

doi:10.1016/j.jpeds.2008.01.035

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