Sexual Harassments Related to Alcohol and Drugs Intake: The Experience of the Rape Centre of Turin

Abstract

A cross-sectional study was conducted that describes the characteristics of sexual violence episodes related to the intake of alcohol and drugs observed among women that turned to the “Centro Soccorso Violenza Sessuale” (SVS) of the Sant’Anna Hospital in Turin between 1 January 2008, and 31 December 2017. Two hundred twenty-two patients were enrolled, 25 of which were minors, 141 were Italians, and most of them knew their aggressor and were raped in a private home. One hundred and fifty-five of them declared to the healthcare personnel to have taken alcoholic substances and/or drugs in conjunction with the event (86 reported having drunk alcohol, 36 having taken drugs and 33 disclosed both alcohol and drug abuse). If the woman knew her abuser, alcohol consumption was described as voluntary in more than 80% of cases, while in relation to drugs the consumption was equally voluntary or fraudulent. About 73% of women who reported having drunk alcohol just had amnesia or amnesia related to other symptoms, while amnesia was present in about 63% of women who reported only drug use. Physicians observed physical injuries on 156 women. Patients who reported to have assumed alcohol presented a significantly higher risk to suffer any physical injury and have a significantly increased risk to suffer injuries to their head and/or neck. The results obtained underline how even in Northern Italy alcohol intake represents the most widespread psychoactive substance in case of drug-facilitated sexual assault. There is therefore a need to promote education and prevention campaigns among citizens, especially among the youngest.

Victims of drug facilitated sexual assault aged 13-24: a cross sectional study on the pool of users of a sexual violence relief centre in Northern Italy

“…In our study, 23%, of adolescents accessing care at SVS were subjected to DFSA, the majority being Italians (67%). This is in contrast with ISTAT findings, which reported women of other geographical origins (20%, against 13% of Italian women) as the most affected by physical or sexual violence, perpetrated by their current or former partner [ 36 ]. In our study, although 22% of the abuses were perpetrated by a stranger, in 43% of cases the perpetrator was an acquaintance, a fellow student, a friend, or a partner (10%).…”

“…A study conducted in Australia highlighted the association of voluntary drug use with DFSA [ 39 ] and another project in Norway underlined the difficulties in finding evidence of proactive sexual assault [ 40 ]. The voluntary intake of alcohol and other substances in DFSA cases was also confirmed by a study previously conducted at the SVS Centre, focusing on all DFSA cases, regardless of victims’ age, from 2008 to 2017 [ 36 ]. Although covering a shorter period compared to the present study, the voluntary assumption of alcohol (87%) and drugs (43%) was frequent.…”

“…Furthermore, the age group that most reported psychoactive substances consumption was the youngest (13–16 years old). In a study conducted by Mognetti, women belonging to younger age groups and those aged over 50 denied voluntary consumption of substances, while in our study the younger group (13–16 years) was the first in terms of drug use [ 36 ].…”

Sexual Violence and Alcohol Intake: A Population-Based Explorative Study in a Northwestern Italian Area

“…Moreover, women with mental health disorders may face additional barriers to protecting themselves from SV, including social isolation, stigma, and the lack of a support system. It should be also taken into consideration that, as demonstrated in our previous work that, sometimes, women regularly consume drugs that act on the central nervous system (CNS) for therapeutic purposes, and the synergistic effects of these drugs can amplify the inhibitory effects of alcohol [25].…”

“…Therefore, this observational study aims to address this gap by providing evidence on the status, characteristics, consequences, and risk indicators of SV in relation to alcohol consumption. In our previous study [25], we explored the characteristics of episodes of sexual violence in a population attending the Rape Centre "Centro Soccorso Violenza Sessuale" (SVS) at Sant'Anna Hospital in Turin, where healthcare personnel suspected the use of alcohol or drug abuse. To deepen the understanding of victimisation in sexually assaulted women who-voluntarily or involuntarily-had consumed alcohol, we expanded our previous database and introduced more stringent inclusion criteria.…”