Using telemedicine and virtual healthcare to improve clinical follow-up for survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence: a 7-year investigation of emergency department cases.

Introduction: The primary objective was to evaluate the effectiveness of telemedicine for improving clinical follow-up for survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence after an emergency department (ED) visit. The Sexual Assault and Partner Abuse Care Program (SAPACP) is an ED-based clinic for survivors of sexual assault/intimate partner violence. Virtual Visit, a telemedicine platform, was introduced at SAPACP in January 2020, allowing patients to attend follow-up virtually.

Telemedicine and virtual healthcare for survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence: A qualitative study.

Background: Survivors of sexual assault and intimate partner violence often face many challenges in seeking/receiving healthcare and are often lost to follow up.

Objectives: Our study objectives are to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and satisfaction of using telemedicine technology among sexual assault and intimate partner violence patients who present to a Canadian Emergency Department.

Design: Qualitative research was conducted using a thematic approach.

Interventions for intimate partner violence during the perinatal period: a scoping review protocol.

Introduction: Globally, the prevalence and incidence of perinatal intimate partner violence (IPV) are well documented and substantiated; however, there is an urgent need to identify interventions to prevent recurrence or revictimisation, and decrease the harms of perinatal IPV. This scoping review is designed to broadly capture all potential interventions for the secondary prevention of IPV, review them in detail, and assess what can reduce revictimisation and foster improvements in both maternal and neonatal outcomes.

Methods And Analysis: With the structure of the Joanna Briggs Institute and Arksey and O'Malley methodology for scoping reviews, the search will be conducted in: MEDLINE(R) ALL (OvidSP), Embase (OvidSP), CINAHL (EBSCOHost), APA PsycInfo (OvidSP), Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (OvidSP), Web of Science, and Applied Social Sciences Index & Abstracts (ProQuest).

Population-Level Trends in Emergency Department Encounters for Sexual Assault Preceding and During the COVID-19 Pandemic Across Ontario, Canada.

Importance: Lockdown measures and the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic are factors associated with increased risk of violence, yet there is limited information on trends in emergency department (ED) encounters for sexual assault.

Objective: To compare changes in ED encounters for sexual assault during the COVID-19 pandemic vs prepandemic estimates.

Design, Setting, And Participants: This retrospective, population-based cohort study used linked health administrative data from 197 EDs across Ontario, Canada, representing more than 15 million residents.

Intimate Partner Violence and Human Trafficking: Trauma We May Not Identify.

Intimate partner violence and human trafficking commonly affect patients presenting to the emergency department including the trauma bay. Although these forms of violence and exploitation are not always the underlying cause of that particular emergency department encounter, screening is important regardless of the presenting condition because this presentation may be the only opportunity to receive help and ultimately plants the seed for future access to help regardless of what a patient chooses to do following this first encounter. There are important medical care considerations in these patients beyond trauma bay procedures that can make the difference in saving a life.

Giving Birth in the Early Phases of the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Patient Experience.

Objective: Obstetrical patients are at risk of complications from COVID-19 and face increased stress due to the pandemic and changes in hospital birth setting. The objective was to describe the perinatal care experiences of obstetrical patients who gave birth during the early phases of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: A descriptive epidemiological survey was administered to consenting patients who gave birth at The Ottawa Hospital (TOH) between March 16th and June 16th, 2020.

Remember that patient you saw last week: characteristics and frequency of patients experiencing anticipated and unanticipated death following ED discharge.

Background: The emergency department (ED) is an at-risk area for medical error. We determined the characteristics of patients with unanticipated and anticipated death within 7 days of ED discharge and whether medical error contributed.

Methods: We performed a single-centre health records review of 200 consecutive cases during a 3-year period from 2014 to 2017 in two urban, academic, tertiary care EDs.

Surviving strangulation: evaluation of non-fatal strangulation in patients presenting to a tertiary care sexual assault and partner abuse care program.

Background: Non-fatal strangulation is a dangerous mechanism of injury among survivors of intimate partner violence and sexual assault, with inadequate evidence to guide investigation in the emergency department (ED). The primary objective is to identify the proportion of intimate partner violence and sexual assault where non-fatal strangulation occurs, and to describe the sequelae of injuries.

Methods: Health records review of patients treated at the Sexual Assault and Partner Abuse Care Program (SAPACP) and/or Trauma Program at a tertiary level hospital between January 2015 and December 2018.

COVID-19 and perinatal intimate partner violence: a cross-sectional survey of pregnant and postpartum individuals in the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Objective: The objectives of this study were to: (1) document violent and controlling behaviours within intimate partnerships during the perinatal period; and (2) determine individual, interpersonal and household-level factors influencing the risk of perinatal intimate partner violence (IPV).

Design: Cross-sectional survey.

Setting: The Ottawa Hospital, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

COVID-19 pandemic and violence: rising risks and decreasing urgent care-seeking for sexual assault and domestic violence survivors.

Background: There is little information on care-seeking patterns for sexual assault and domestic violence during the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of this study was to examine the changes in emergency department (ED) admissions for sexual assault and domestic violence since the COVID-19 pandemic was declared.

Methods: Observational ED admissions data from The Ottawa Hospital were analyzed from March 4 to May 5 (62 days) in 2020 (COVID-19 period) and compared to the same period in 2018 (pre-COVID-19).

HIV nonoccupational postexposure prophylaxis for sexual assault cases: a 3-year investigation.

Objective: Nonoccupational postexposure prophylaxis (nPEP) programs offer antiretroviral therapy to prevent HIV following at-risk exposures like sexual assault. We investigated the levels of elective nPEP uptake among sexual assault cases presenting for emergency medical care.

Design: Retrospective analysis.

A 15-Year Population-Based Investigation of Sexual Assault Cases Across the Province of Ontario, Canada, 2002-2016.

To estimate the population-level frequencies and standardized rates of sexual assault cases in the province of Ontario, Canada. We conducted a 15-year retrospective analysis (2002-2016) of sexual assault cases by linking 5 provincial administrative health databases. We defined sexual assault by an algorithm of 23 and physician billing codes.

Geographies of Sexual Assault: A Spatial Analyses to Identify Neighborhoods Affected by Sexual and Gender-Based Violence.

Emergency departments are a common access point for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), but very little is known about where survivors live and the neighborhoods they return to. The objectives of this study were to describe the patient population that present for a sexual or partner-based assault and explore the geographic distribution of cases across the Ottawa-Gatineau area. Data for this study were extracted from the Sexual Assault and Partner Abuse Care Program (SAPACP) case registry (January 1 to December 31, 2015) at The Ottawa Hospital.

Achieving just outcomes: forensic evidence collection in emergency department sexual assault cases.

Background: Achieving just outcomes in sexual assault cases is one of the most serious and complex problems facing the healthcare and justice systems. This study was designed to determine the prevalence and correlates of Sexual Assault Evidence Kit (SAEK) completion and release to police among sexual assault cases presenting to the ED.

Methods: Data for this retrospective study come from the Sexual Assault and Partner Abuse Care Programme (SAPACP) case registry (1 January to 31 December, 2015) at The Ottawa Hospital, a unique medical-forensic access point and the only facility offering SAEK collection in Ottawa.

Ice cream rounds: The adaptation, implementation, and evaluation of a peer-support wellness rounds in an emergency medicine resident training program.

Unlabelled: Introduction/Innovation ConceptEmergency medicine (EM) requires physicians to deal with acutely ill patients in a fast-paced and dynamic environment, which creates a barrier to debriefing after critical events. These unique challenges can negatively impact wellness. We sought to adapt and implement a peer-support wellness program called 'Ice Cream Rounds' in an EM residency setting.

Two, three, and four-drug regimens for HIV post-exposure prophylaxis in a North American sexual assault victim population.

Background/objectives: Due to perceived increased tolerability and compliance, and decreased cost, recent trends in practice are moving towards using fewer drugs for HIV post-exposure prophylaxis. However, there is limited literature to assess this is in the North American sexual assault victim population.

Methods: This retrospective before-and-after cohort study compared patients seen at a sexual assault care facility before and after the introduction of two and three-drug post-exposure prophylaxis regimens.

Characteristics associated with sexual assaults at mass gatherings.

Introduction: Sexual assault is disturbingly common, yet little is known about those occurring at mass gatherings, defined as a group of people congregated for a common purpose. Our objectives were to examine patterns of variation in sexual assault associated with mass gatherings and to determine factors associated with assaults occurring at mass gatherings.

Methods: We performed a case series analysis from January to December, 2013.

The impact of a sexual assault/domestic violence program on ED care.

Introduction: Examination and management of the sexually assaulted patient comprise a complex task. On-call nurses with advanced training are used in some hospitals, but their impact on patient care and appropriate forensic examination is largely unknown. We evaluated the impact of the introduction of a sexual assault/domestic violence program (SADVP) on ED flow, comprehensive patient care, and collection of forensic evidence.