Screening Teens for Dating Violence
Because teens rarely report dating violence and may view it as a normal part of a relationship, health care professionals need to take an active approach and screen all adolescents for dating violence. One effective approach to screening begins with an open-ended question about relationships with peers, narrows the focus by asking how they resolve conflicts with peers, followed by direct questions about specific behaviors, such as pushing, hitting, being afraid, being hurt, or being forced to have sexual contact. Practitioners should avoid using general, emotionally loaded terms such as abuse, rape, or violence. [1]
In addition, health care professionals need to be alert for signs, symptoms, or contextual factors that suggest an adolescent is at high risk for dating violence. Teens may show:
- General signs and symptoms of distress that could be caused by dating violence or other stressful life circumstances (e.g., depression, anxiety, abdominal pain, pelvic pain, sudden changes in relationships with family and friends or in functioning at school, and drug and alcohol abuse).
- Specific signs and symptoms that are more specific to intentional injury, including dating violence (e.g., contusions; abrasions; lacerations to the torso, breasts, face, and genital or anal area; fractures, burns, multiple sites of injury, and a pattern of injury over time. Health care providers should be suspicious if the stated explanation for injury is not consistent with the apparent mechanism of injury. [2]