Implementation of Croatia's Domestic Violence Legislation

Abstract

Several studies have confirmed a negative impact of precarious employment on mental health among young people. However the mechanisms of this are less known. Aim The aim of this study was to investigate to what degree financial difficulties and residential marginalization are mediating factors of the association between precarious employment and poor mental health. Methods The study utilized information from 786 individuals between 18-34 years of age who provided information at baseline (2000) and both follow-ups (2005 and 2010) of the Scania Public Health Cohort surveys performed in southern Sweden. Mental health was assessed by the GHQ12 instrument, information about precarious employment by a multifaceted instrument, financial difficulties and residential marginaliza-tion (lack of ownership of apartment/house), was collected at all three surveys. The potential mediators were introduced step-wise in a logistic regression model. Results The increased risk, adjusted for age and gender, for developing poor mental among individuals with a precarious employment situation was 57% (RR = 1.57; 95% CI 1.13-2.18), introducing financial difficulties and residential marginalization into the model reduced the increased risk to 35% (RR = 1.35 95% CI 0.95-1.92), i.e. about 40% of the effect could be mediated by those factors. In the final model RR for financial difficulties was 1.64 (95% CI 1.16-2.32) and for residential margin-alization 1.28 (95% CI 0.90-1.92) Conclusions Financial difficulties and residential marginalization seemed to mediate slightly less than half of the effect of precarious employment on poor mental health among young individuals. Financial difficulties also had an independent statistically significant effect on poor mental health in this group. The policy implication is that adequate unemployment insurance would buffer a significant proportion of the negative effect of precarious employment on young peoples' mental health. Key messages Financial difficulties and residential marginalization seemed to mediate slightly less than half of the effect of precarious employment on poor mental health among young individuals The policy implication is that adequate unemployment insurance would buffer a significant proportion of the negative effect of precarious employment on young peoples' mental health European Validation of ISCO-based Job Exposure Matrices using EWCS 2010 Background In Public Health effects of work on health are usually either measured using multi-item scales or using constructs for an occupations socioeconomic status. There's lack of scales that allow clues on working conditions when there is only information on occupation. We constructed job exposure matrices based on ISCO-88 and ISCO-08 for overall physical and psychosocial job exposures, carcinogenic agents as well as physical exhaustive work and validated it using the European Working Conditions Survey 2010. Method The Index itself is based on a German sample of men and women aged 15+ years (n = 20.036). 39 workplace characteristics were assigned to 3 multi-item (overall, physical, psychosocial strain) and 2 single-item scales (carcinogenic agents, physical exhaustive work). Scales were constructed using multi-level linear regression models using ISCO digits as levels (controls: sex, age, job experience and working hours). Validation is done by EWCS (n = 43.816, 34 countries) for self-perceived health risks, hazards at work, self-rated health status and a health symptoms score. Results It was possible to assign values to 99% of the EWCS sample. The mean job index was associated with prevalence of all health outcomes on the country level (r = .28 to .51). In country specific regression models (controls: age, sex, working hours and experience in current job), all three indices were significant predictors for all health outcomes in 33 of the 34 countries analyzed. The association with was strongest for overall physical and overall health risk score. Discussion The generated Job Indices are validated proxy variables for domain specific health risks at work in Europe. They can be used as explanatory and control variables as well as to describe study samples. Using the ISCO-08 and ISCO-88 classification schemes, the indices may be used with survey data as well as with process produced data from health insurances or pension funds. Key messages The generated Job Indices are validated proxy variables for domain specific health risks at work in Europe Using the ISCO-08 and ISCO-88 classification schemes, the indices may be used with survey data as well as with process produced data from health insurances or pension funds. Background Domestic violence is a serious problem in Croatia. According to a 2010 survey, domestic violence affects one in three families, and up to 40% of Croatian citizens know at least one victim of domestic violence. Women are overwhelmingly the target: they make up only 3-12% of the perpetrators but 70-83% of the victim. Methods The review of Croatian domestic violence legislation since 2003 was done and compare with their implementation in practice using focus group of representatives from different sectors: health, social and well-fare, education, police, judgment/court, female groups and media. Results SWOT analysis shows that a legal framework to prevent, protect and solve the existing problem is done on the best way.