TY - JOUR
T1 - Indentifying crime victims who are at high risk for post traumatic stress disorder: developing a preactical referral instrument.
AU - Wolfarth, T.
AU - Winkel, F.W.
AU - van den Brink, W.
PY - 2002
Y1 - 2002
N2 - Objective: To construct a practical instrument for the identification and referral of crime victims who are at high risk for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Method: Crime victims filing a complaint at a police station were asked to fill out a questionnaire probing risk factors for PTSD (n = 126). One and 3 months later, these victims filled out a self-report version of the PTSD Symptom Scale (PSS-SR). Results: The combination of four items predicted persistent PTSD with a sensitivity of 1.00 and a specificity of 0.62. The items were: being victims of a violent crime, knowing the perpetrator, experiencing the results of the crime as worse than was expected, and blaming oneself for the event. Only 25% of PTSD cases received emotional support from a victim assistance organization. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that early detection of high-risk victims and their referral to treatment is both necessary and possible.
AB - Objective: To construct a practical instrument for the identification and referral of crime victims who are at high risk for post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Method: Crime victims filing a complaint at a police station were asked to fill out a questionnaire probing risk factors for PTSD (n = 126). One and 3 months later, these victims filled out a self-report version of the PTSD Symptom Scale (PSS-SR). Results: The combination of four items predicted persistent PTSD with a sensitivity of 1.00 and a specificity of 0.62. The items were: being victims of a violent crime, knowing the perpetrator, experiencing the results of the crime as worse than was expected, and blaming oneself for the event. Only 25% of PTSD cases received emotional support from a victim assistance organization. Conclusion: This study demonstrates that early detection of high-risk victims and their referral to treatment is both necessary and possible.
U2 - 10.1034/j.1600-0447.2002.01099.x
DO - 10.1034/j.1600-0447.2002.01099.x
M3 - Article
VL - 105
SP - 451
EP - 460
JO - Acta psychiatrica scandinavica
JF - Acta psychiatrica scandinavica
SN - 0001-690X
ER -