Women’s lifetime interpersonal violence exposure and associations with hospitalization at the national level: Results from a New Zealand population-based study

Objective: To assess women’s experiences of interpersonal violence using best practice approaches and explore associated health consequences measured through health service utilization documented through national-level hospital discharge data. Methods: Information on violence exposure (child sexual abuse (CSA), non-partner physical and sexual violence, and intimate partner violence (IPV)) was collected from 1151 ever-partnered women through a population-based survey and linked with publicly funded hospital discharge data from New Zealand. Logistic regression was used to explore associations between women’s experience of each interpersonal violence type and hospitalization by health condition. Results: Women who experienced CSA were more likely to be hospitalized for: neoplasms (adjusted odds ratio (AOR) 1.78 (1.14–2.77)), digestive (AOR 1.70 (1.18–2.44)), musculoskeletal conditions (AOR 1.60 (1.03–2.50)), pregnancy complications (AOR 1.59 (1.15–2.19)) and injuries (AOR 1.53 (1.08–2.17)). Women who experienced non-partner physical violence had increased hospitalization for pregnancy complications (AOR 1.61 (1.11–2.33)); those who experienced sexual violence had increased hospitalizations for pregnancy complications (AOR 1.76 (1.5–2.69)) and injuries (AOR 2.00 (1.28–3.11)). Experience of 3+ IPV types was associated with increased hospitalization for: respiratory conditions (AOR 2.14 (1.17–3.92)), pregnancy complications (AOR 2.07 (1.42–3.04)), musculoskeletal (AOR 1.78 (1.07–2.97)), neoplasms (AOR 1.73 (1.04–2.88)), digestive (AOR 1.64 (1.10–2.44)) and injuries (AOR 1.55 (1.01–2.37)). Conclusions: Results identify strong associations between women’s experiences of interpersonal violence and increased hospitalization. These findings reinforce calls for healthcare providers to identify and respond to life-course violence exposure and for violence prevention. Robust implementation has potential to reduce demand for hospital services at the national level.