Self-reported intimate partner violence among men who have sex with men at an urban Australian sexual health clinic.

Sex Health

Sydney Sexual Health Centre, South Eastern Sydney Local Health District, Sydney, NSW, Australia; and School of Population Health, University of NSW, Sydney, NSW, Australia.

Published: February 2024

AI Article Synopsis

  • In Australia, IPV affects 17% of women and 6% of men, and men who have sex with men (MSM) may experience IPV at similar or even higher rates, prompting this study to assess IPV screening in a sexual health clinic.
  • Over a two-year period, 89.9% of 2410 eligible MSM clients were screened, revealing that 3% reported experiencing physical violence or intimidation in the past year.
  • Factors such as being born in Australia, having Medicare, and drug use significantly increased the likelihood of reporting IPV, while being employed or studying decreased that likelihood by 72%.

Article Abstract

Background: In Australia, 17% of women and 6% of men have experienced intimate partner violence (IPV). Although most IPV research has focused on heterosexual partnerships, studies suggest that men who have sex with men (MSM) may experience IPV at similar or higher rates than those documented among women. IPV may also take different forms among MSM and have different health and social impacts. This study aims to assess the utility of a screening tool for identifying and responding to IPV among MSM attending a sexual health clinic in Sydney, Australia.

Methods: Between 1 June 2020 and 30 June 2022, MSM clients were screened using standardised questions to identify IPV experienced within the preceding 12months. Answers to the screening questions were correlated with data collected routinely at the initial clinic visit, including age, employment, country of birth, drug and alcohol use, sexual partner numbers, and any history of sex work, pre-exposure prophylaxis use and HIV status, as well as any bacterial STI diagnosed at the initial visit.

Results: There were 2410 eligible clients and of these, 2167 (89.9%) were screened during the study period. A total of 64 men (3.0%) (95% CI 2.3-3.8%) reported experiencing physical violence or intimidation in the past 12months. Controlling for age, men who were born in Australia were 2.03 (95% CI: 1.04-3.01) times more likely to report IPV, and men who had Medicare were 2.43 (95% CI: 0.95-3.90) times more likely to report IPV than those who did not. Those who had ever injected drugs were 5.8 (95% CI: 1.87-9.73) times more likely to report IPV, and men with sexualised drug use were 4.11 (95% CI: 2.03-6.19) times more likely. Those that were employed or studying were 72% (95%CI: 0.13-0.42) less likely to report IPV.

Conclusions: The prevalence of reported IPV in our study was lower than that reported by others, which may be due to differences in recruitment methods and questions asked. Associations between IPV in MSM and injecting drug use and sexualised drug use highlight that clinicians should be aware of the impact and potential for IPV particularly in those with risk factors.

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Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/SH23160DOI Listing

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