Sexual Trauma Screening for Men and Women: Examining the Construct Validity of a Two-Item Screen.

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA), the largest integrated healthcare system in the United States, has conducted universal screening for military sexual trauma (MST) to facilitate MST-related care since 2002. VHA defines MST as sexual assault or repeated, threatening sexual harassment that occurred during military service. Evidence of construct validity, the degree to which the screen is measuring what it purports to measure (i.e., MST), was examined using the 23-item Sexual Experiences Questionnaire-Department of Defense (SEQ-DoD). Results showed individuals who endorsed no SEQ-DoD items screened MST negative. Those who had experienced more SEQ-DoD behaviors with greater frequency, and across all four SEQ-DoD domains, were more likely to screen MST positive. Findings were similar for men and women. These findings contribute to the validity evidence for the VHA MST screen.

Lessons from Initiating the First Veterans Health Administration (VA) Women's Health Practice-based Research Network (WH-PBRN) Study.

BACKGROUND: The Veterans Health Administration (VA) Women's Health Practice-Based Research Network (WH-PBRN) was created to foster innovations for the health care of women veterans. The inaugural study by the WH-PBRN was designed to identify women veterans' own priorities and preferences for mental health services and to inform refinements to WH-PBRN operational procedures. Addressing the latter, this article reports lessons learned from the inaugural study. METHODS: WH-PBRN site coordinators at the 4 participating sites convened weekly with the study coordinator and the WH-PBRN program manager to address logistical issues and identify lessons learned. Findings were categorized into a matrix of challenges and facilitators related to key study elements. RESULTS: Challenges to the conduct of PBRN-based research included tracking of regulatory documents; cross-site variability in some regulatory processes; and troubleshooting logistics of clinic-based recruitment. Facilitators included a central institutional review board, strong relationships between WH-PBRN research teams and women's health clinic teams, and the perception that women want to help other women veterans. CONCLUSION: Our experience with the inaugural WH-PBRN study demonstrated the feasibility of establishing productive relationships between local clinicians and researchers, and of recruiting a special population (women veterans) in diverse sites within an integrated health care system. This identified strengths of a PBRN approach.