EVALUATION OF THE ACCURACY OF A ‘TWO QUESTION SCREENING TOOL’ IN THE DETECTION OF INTIMATE PARTNER VIOLENCE

Introduction: Intimate partner violence is universally under diagnosed and the institution of timeous multi-faceted interventions has been noted to benefit victims. Currently the concept of using a screening tool to detect IPV has not been widely explored in a primary healthcare setting in South Africa. The objectives of this study were: 1) to determine the operating characteristics of a two-question screening tool for IPV (WAST-short) ; and 2) to estimate the prevalence of IPV among women attending an Outpatient Department , using a validated questionnaire Women Abuse Screening Tool Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted prospectively, with systematic sampling of 1 in 8 women over a period of 3 months. Participants were asked about their experience of IPV during the past 12 months. The WAST-short was used to screen patients for IPV. To verify the result of the screening, women were also asked the remaining questions from the WAST. Results: The prevalence of IPV in the sample was 32%. The WAST-short was shown to have the following operating characteristics: sensitivity 45.2%, specificity 98%. Conclusion: The WAST-short lacks sufficient sensitivity and therefore is not an ideal screening tool for this primary care setting. The low sensitivity can be attributed to the participants understanding of the screening questions, which utilize Eurocentric and nuanced definitions of IPV. Improvement in the sensitivity of the WAST-short may be achieved by lowering the threshold for a positive result for IPV screening.