The need for victimization screening in a poor outpatient medical population

Recent reports indicate that violence toward others is a major public health problem in the black community; however, there are few empirical studies that delineate the severity of the problem. The authors have compiled the results of a victimization screening form obtained from a poor outpatient medical population. These results are compared with a similar survey performed on a poor outpatient psychiatric population. Recommendations are made that poor medical populations should be screened for histories of victimization, because early identification of patients at risk may reduce their chances of future victimization.