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Background Agencies and clinical practices are beginning to provide trauma-informed care (TIC) to their clients. However, there are no measures to assess clients’ perceptions of and satisfaction with the TIC care they have received. A 20-item questionnaire, the TIC Grade, was developed, based on the National Center for Trauma-Informed Care principles of TIC, to assess the patient or client perception of the TIC provided in settings that serve adolescents and emerging adults. Objective The goal of this project was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the TIC Grade instrument and to make recommendations for use of the full measure and its short form—an overall letter grade. Study Design The TIC Grade questionnaire was administered to youth over the age of 18 years from four community partners providing care to vulnerable young adults. Potential participants were offered questionnaires at the end of their visit. Those interested in participating left their completed anonymous questionnaire in a locked box to maintain confidentiality. Questionnaires were collected from 100 respondents; 95 were complete enough to include in analyses for psychometric evaluation. Results The findings of this project support the reliability and usability of the 20-item TIC Grade measure to assess youth’s perceptions of the quality of TIC they received. Conclusions This TIC-specific, behaviorally worded client report measure can assist service delivery organizations to assess their success at implementing TIC and to identify areas where further staff training and support are needed.

Objectives Human trafficking is a public health issue that has substantial health consequences. However, research on the preparedness of health facilities to serve people who have experienced or are experiencing human trafficking is limited. We examined health facility preparedness related to human trafficking in Michigan. Methods We used a cross-sectional design to explore health facility preparedness related to human trafficking in Michigan. We sampled 10 prosperity regions according to health facility type (Federally Qualified Health Centers, health departments, and hospitals). An email invitation was sent to identified health facility personnel (eg, administrators, physicians, nurses) from May to June 2019 with a link to a 26-item survey with items about current policies, protocols, and areas for improvement related to human trafficking. Results Forty-two Federally Qualified Health Centers, health departments, and hospitals responded to the survey. Most health facilities had screening policies and response protocols related to child maltreatment (screening: 32/41 [78.0%]; response: 38/40 [95.0%]) and intimate partner violence (screening: 33/41 [80.5%]; response: 37/40 [92.5%]). However, fewer facilities had a screening policy (16/41 [39.0%]) and response protocol (25/40 [62.5%]) for human trafficking; more of these facilities focused on sex trafficking than on labor trafficking. The top needs related to human trafficking were (1) individual-level health care provider training, (2) health facility–level screening policies and response protocols, (3) community-level resources, and (4) societal-level awareness, funding allocation, and data. Conclusions Facility-level resources are needed to ensure that health care providers have adequate training and support to address human trafficking in the health care system.

Background Community mobilization (CM) is recommended as a best practice intervention for low resource settings to reduce maternal mortality. Measurement of process outcomes are lacking and little is known about how CM impacts individuals or how community members perceive its function. Given the complex and recursive nature of CM interventions, research that describes the CM process at multiple levels is needed. This study examines change in CM domains at baseline and endline in rural Zambia. Methods This secondary analysis uses data from a large maternity waiting homes intervention in rural Zambia that employed CM over 3 years as part of a package of interventions. A 19-item CM survey was collected from three groups (women with babies n = 1202) with focus groups (n = 76) at two timepoints from ten intervention and ten comparison sites. Factor analysis refined factors used to assess temporal change through multivariable regression. Independent covariates included time (baseline vs endline), intervention vs comparison site, group (women with babies, healthworkers, community members), and demographic variables. Interaction effects were checked for time and group for each factor. Results Final analyses included 1202 individuals from two districts in Zambia. Factor analysis maintained domains of governance, collective efficacy, self-efficacy, and power in relationships. CM domains of self-efficacy, power in relationships, and governance showed significant change over time in multivariable models. All increases in the self-efficacy factor were isolated within intervention communities (b = 0.34, p Conclusions Community mobilization interventions increase participation in communities to address health as a human right as called for in the 1978 Alma Ata Declaration. Grounded in empowerment, CM addresses socially prescribed power imbalances and health equity through a capacity building approach. These data reflect CM interventions function and have impact in different ways for different groups within the same community. Engaging directly with marginalized groups, using the community action cycle, and simultaneous quality improvement at the facility level may increase benefit for all groups, yet requires further testing in rural Zambia.

Background Human trafficking is a global human rights violation that has profound health, economic, and social impacts. There has been little investigation of service needs and response options for human trafficking survivors in Ethiopia. The purpose of this study was to understand the potential service needs and response options for human trafficking in Ethiopia from multiple stakeholder perspectives. Methods We conducted a qualitative needs assessment and used content analysis to analyze individual interviews with key stakeholder groups including service providers, academics, lawyers, and non-government organization (NGO) workers between the summer of 2015 – spring of 2016. Results In total, 17 individuals participated and content analysis elicited four overarching themes related to post-trafficking needs, including mental health considerations, barriers and facilitators to providing survivor services, survivor service needs, and comprehensive care models. Conclusions This qualitative needs assessment suggests that trafficking survivors may require professional and community services throughout their trafficking experiences, including medical care, economic and job opportunities, legal advocacy, and mental health services. Interventions should harness preexisting community strengths such as Ethiopia’s “social healing system,” health extension workers, and mobile technology. Future studies should explore tailored interventions and comprehensive models of care implemented within the pre-existing healthcare, social service, and community structures.

Background: Adolescent e-cigarette use has increased, as has e-cigarette use during pregnancy, yet little is known about how these types of tobacco/nicotine (cigarettes/e-cigarettes) use during ado...

Background: Human trafficking is a human rights violation occurring around the world. Despite the profound social, health, and economic consequences of this crime, there is a lack of research about...

Background and objectives Research investigating e-cigarettes/e-products and dual use with cigarettes among pregnant sexual minority individuals in the United States is lacking. This study addresses this gap using a national sample. Methods Two waves of national panel data (2015-2018) from the Population Assessment of Tobacco and Health study were used. The sample included 1842 women, 237 identified as sexual minorities (n = 17 lesbian, n = 177 bisexual, n = 43 something else), who indicated pregnancy during the past 12 months at Waves 3 or 4. Covariates included race, ethnicity, past-year income, and education. Cigarette, e-cigarette, or dual use was examined during the last trimester. Results Sexual minorities had higher adjusted odds of cigarette use during their last trimester of pregnancy relative to heterosexual women (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 1.55, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.08, 2.23). Bisexual women had higher odds of smoking cigarettes during their third trimester compared with heterosexual women (AOR = 1.82, 95% CI = 1.21, 2.72). Lesbian women were more likely to use e-cigarettes/e-products (AOR = 9.15, 95% CI = 2.29, 36.5) and indicate dual use (AOR = 6.00, 95% CI = 1.43, 25.1) during their third trimester of pregnancy compared with heterosexual women. Conclusion and scientific significance Maternal health among US sexual minority women would benefit from clinicians equipped to provide accurate information and support for Food and Drug Administration-approved smoking cessation, information about e-cigarettes/e-products, and dual use. This study is the first to examine cigarette, e-cigarette, and dual use during the third trimester of pregnancy using a national sample, with specific attention to differences in sexual orientation.

BACKGROUND: Service delivery organizations are advancing the provision of trauma-informed care (TIC) for youth to improve outcomes. However, currently there are no validated, reliable evaluation measures to capture the voices of adolescent clients and how well they perceive TIC implementation. AIMS: The purpose of this project was to create an evaluation measure with strong content validity for adolescent health and service users to give feedback to organizations about their implementation of TIC. This article outlines Step 1 of our instrument development, by discussing our process creating the measure and affirming content validity. Psychometric testing of this measure (Step 2) is described in a companion paper. METHODS: We combined deductive theory substruction with an inductive participatory process to create, revise, and finalize the measure. The National Center for Trauma-Informed Care’s framework of four practices and six principles was substructed into an 18-item draft measure. A four-member community youth advisory board (CYAB) then worked to inductively modify our draft to provide age-appropriate clarity and ensure a nontriggering respondent experience. Finally, the CYAB members conducted cognitive interviews with 10 other adolescents in local evening data collection events, refining the measure for future psychometric testing. RESULTS: The process resulted in a 20-item form based on CYAB feedback. Refinements included providing an accessible definition of trauma, asking questions about trauma history, and asking whether trauma affected the client’s visit on the day of service use. CONCLUSIONS: The CYAB involvement enhanced content validity and ensured a trauma-informed instrument development approach.

INTRODUCTION Skilled care is indicated as a measure to prevent the deaths of pregnant women across sub-Saharan Africa. Despite this, many women continue to give birth at home. There has been little attention as to how the experience of intimate partner violence (IPV) or autonomous decision-making about place of birth influences home births in rural Zambia. This study explores how markers of sociocultural gender inequities (prevalence of IPV and autonomous decision-making) correlate with home birth in rural Zambia. METHODS This secondary analysis uses quantitative data from a baseline household survey with women who had given birth within the past 13 months in rural Zambia. Control variables shown to be significant in the literature were included in the model, and binary logistic regression was used to assess the influence of IPV and autonomous decision-making on home birth. RESULTS This sample included 2381 women from rural Zambia, of whom 384 reported a home birth within the past 13 months. Women who were autonomously making the decision about where to give birth were more likely to have a home birth (adjusted odds ratio [AOR], 1.729; SE, 0.210; 95% CI, 1.362-2.194; P < .001). Self-report of experiencing physical IPV in the past 2 weeks was not significant in predicting home birth (AOR, 0.783; SE, 0.181; 95% CI, 0.496-1.234; P = .293). Women who self-identified as Tumbuka or other, were able to afford school fees, had completed secondary education or higher, were married, and had 4 or more antenatal care visits were significantly less likely to report a home birth. DISCUSSION This quantitative analysis did not corroborate findings from other research that implicates IPV as a predictor of home birth. Additionally, autonomous decision-making was not associated with a decrease in home births. Future work should incorporate qualitative or mixed methods strategies to comprehensively explore household- and facility-level interventions to promote facility birth.

The purpose of this review is to integrate evidence on human trafficking in Ethiopia and identify gaps and recommendations for service delivery, research and training, and policy. A scoping literature review approach was used to systematically search nursing, medical, psychological, law, and international databases and synthesize information on a complex, understudied topic. The search yielded 826 articles, and 39 met the predetermined criteria for inclusion in the review. Trafficking in Ethiopia has occurred internally and externally in the form of adult and child labor and sex trafficking. There were also some reports of organ trafficking and other closely related human rights violations, such as child marriage, child soldiering, and exploitative intercountry adoption. Risk factors for trafficking included push factors (poverty, political instability, economic problems, and gender discrimination) and pull factors (demand for cheap labor). Trafficking was associated with poor health and economic outcomes for victims. Key recommendations for service delivery, research and training, and policy are identified, including establishing comprehensive services for survivor rehabilitation and reintegration, conducting quantitative health outcomes research, and reforming policy around migration and trafficking. Implementing the recommendations identified by this review will allow policy makers, researchers, and practitioners to take meaningful steps toward confronting human trafficking in Ethiopia.