Physical abuse against pregnant aborigines in Taiwan: prevalence and risk factors

The purpose of this study was to estimate the prevalence of, and to investigate the risk factors for physical abuse against pregnant aborigines in Taiwan. A cross-sectional survey was conducted. Aboriginal women who had just given birth in hospitals were recruited from January to December 2003. The women were interviewed with a structured questionnaire about the physical abuse and substance use experiences. Participants were 1143 aboriginal women who had just given birth in hospitals. About 175/1143 of the women (15.3%) had ever experienced physical abuse from a husband or intimate partner, and 79/1143 of the women (6.9%) had experienced it during their recent pregnancy. Multiple logistic regression analysis revealed that the women who were more likely to have been physically abused during their pregnancy were: had fewer years of education, husbands who were unemployed, with a patriarchal family situation and had alcohol, cigarette and non-prescription drug use. Based on these results, we suggest that health care professionals provide adequate support and health education, develop interventions, and use referrals in concert with routine prenatal care in order to reduce and prevent the physical abuse of aboriginal women in Taiwan.