What French Women Think About Systematic Screening for Intimate Partner Violence by General Practitioners During Primary Care Consultations

Abstract

Since 2019, the French national health authority recommends that general practitioners (GPs) should perform systematic screening for intimate partner violence during consultations. To describe the opinions of French women about systematic screening for intimate partner violence in primary care, and to identify factors associated with these opinions, a cross-sectional, observational study was performed among French women aged 18 years or over, using an ad hoc questionnaire about the role of the GP in screening for intimate partner violence disseminated on social networks. In total, 942 women responded (age 39.5 ± 13.6 years, 76.2% were in a relationship, 58.8% had children). Overall, 50.2% of participants were in favor of screening for intimate partner violence only in case of signs suggestive of violence, while 47.7% were in favor of systematic screening for all women, even in the absence of overt signs of violence, and 2.1% were not in favor of screening. The factors associated with a positive opinion of systematic screening for all women were as follows: working in the healthcare sector (odds ratio (OR) = 1.3 (95% CI [1.01, 1.8]); p = .04) and believing the GP to be the professional best placed to detect intimate partner violence (OR = 1.5 [1.1, 2.2]; p = .01). Conversely, having children (OR = 0.6 [0.5, 0.9]; p = .002) and believing the police or emergency services to be the professionals best placed to detect intimate partner violence (OR = 0.5 [0.3, 0.9]; p = .02) were factors associated with a negative opinion of systematic screening for all women. Women’s opinions about systematic screening for intimate partner violence in primary care appear to be disparate. It would be worth investigating a possible lack of knowledge concerning the number of victims of intimate partner violence, and its repercussions on women’s health.