Protocol for the first large-scale emergency care-based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault: the Women’s Health Study

Introduction Worldwide, an estimated 10%–27% of women are sexually assaulted during their lifetime. Despite the enormity of sexual assault as a public health problem, to our knowledge, no large-scale prospective studies of experiences and recovery over time among women presenting for emergency care...

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Main Authors: Samuel A McLean, Ronald C Kessler, Nicole A Short, Jenyth Sullivan, April Soward, Kenneth A Bollen, Israel Liberzon, Sheila A M Rauch, Kathy Bell, Catherine Rossi, Megan Lechner, Carissa Novak, Kristen Witkemper
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2019-11-01
Series:BMJ Open
Online Access:https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/11/e031087.full
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author Samuel A McLean
Ronald C Kessler
Nicole A Short
Jenyth Sullivan
April Soward
Kenneth A Bollen
Israel Liberzon
Sheila A M Rauch
Kathy Bell
Catherine Rossi
Megan Lechner
Carissa Novak
Kristen Witkemper
author_facet Samuel A McLean
Ronald C Kessler
Nicole A Short
Jenyth Sullivan
April Soward
Kenneth A Bollen
Israel Liberzon
Sheila A M Rauch
Kathy Bell
Catherine Rossi
Megan Lechner
Carissa Novak
Kristen Witkemper
author_sort Samuel A McLean
collection DOAJ
description Introduction Worldwide, an estimated 10%–27% of women are sexually assaulted during their lifetime. Despite the enormity of sexual assault as a public health problem, to our knowledge, no large-scale prospective studies of experiences and recovery over time among women presenting for emergency care after sexual assault have been performed.Methods and analysis Women ≥18 years of age who present for emergency care within 72 hours of sexual assault to a network of treatment centres across the USA are approached for study participation. Blood DNA and RNA samples and brief questionnaire and medical record data are obtained from women providing initial consent. Full consent is obtained at initial 1 week follow-up to analyse blood sample data and to perform assessments at 1 week, 6 weeks, 6 months and 1 year. These assessments include evaluation of survivor life history, current health and recovery and experiences with treatment providers, law enforcement and the legal system.Ethics and dissemination This study is approved by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) and the IRB of each participating study site. We hope to present the results of this study to the scientific community at conferences and in peer-reviewed journals.
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spelling doaj-art-73d4f5bef64140f9b2e8141467da19832025-08-20T02:07:30ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552019-11-0191110.1136/bmjopen-2019-031087Protocol for the first large-scale emergency care-based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault: the Women’s Health StudySamuel A McLean0Ronald C Kessler1Nicole A Short2Jenyth Sullivan3April Soward4Kenneth A Bollen5Israel Liberzon6Sheila A M Rauch7Kathy Bell8Catherine Rossi9Megan Lechner10Carissa Novak11Kristen Witkemper124 Emergency Medicine, The University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA3 Department of Health Care Policy, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA1 Psychiatry, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA2 Department of Anesthesiology, UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA2 Department of Anesthesiology, UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA3 Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and Department of Sociology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA4 Department of Psychiatry, Texas A&M University System Health Science Center College of Medicine, Bryan, Texas, USA5 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA6 Tulsa Forensic Nursing, Tulsa Police Department, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA7 Forensic Nursing, Cone Health, Greensboro, North Carolina, USA8 Forensic Nurse Examining Team, University of Colorado Health Colorado Springs, Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA2 Department of Anesthesiology, UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA2 Department of Anesthesiology, UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USAIntroduction Worldwide, an estimated 10%–27% of women are sexually assaulted during their lifetime. Despite the enormity of sexual assault as a public health problem, to our knowledge, no large-scale prospective studies of experiences and recovery over time among women presenting for emergency care after sexual assault have been performed.Methods and analysis Women ≥18 years of age who present for emergency care within 72 hours of sexual assault to a network of treatment centres across the USA are approached for study participation. Blood DNA and RNA samples and brief questionnaire and medical record data are obtained from women providing initial consent. Full consent is obtained at initial 1 week follow-up to analyse blood sample data and to perform assessments at 1 week, 6 weeks, 6 months and 1 year. These assessments include evaluation of survivor life history, current health and recovery and experiences with treatment providers, law enforcement and the legal system.Ethics and dissemination This study is approved by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Institutional Review Board (IRB) and the IRB of each participating study site. We hope to present the results of this study to the scientific community at conferences and in peer-reviewed journals.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/11/e031087.full
spellingShingle Samuel A McLean
Ronald C Kessler
Nicole A Short
Jenyth Sullivan
April Soward
Kenneth A Bollen
Israel Liberzon
Sheila A M Rauch
Kathy Bell
Catherine Rossi
Megan Lechner
Carissa Novak
Kristen Witkemper
Protocol for the first large-scale emergency care-based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault: the Women’s Health Study
BMJ Open
title Protocol for the first large-scale emergency care-based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault: the Women’s Health Study
title_full Protocol for the first large-scale emergency care-based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault: the Women’s Health Study
title_fullStr Protocol for the first large-scale emergency care-based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault: the Women’s Health Study
title_full_unstemmed Protocol for the first large-scale emergency care-based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault: the Women’s Health Study
title_short Protocol for the first large-scale emergency care-based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault: the Women’s Health Study
title_sort protocol for the first large scale emergency care based longitudinal cohort study of recovery after sexual assault the women s health study
url https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/11/e031087.full
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