Rape victim assessment : findings by psychiatrists and psychologists at Weskoppies hospital

dc.contributor.authorCoetzee, Kobus
dc.contributor.authorLippi, Gian
dc.contributor.emailkobus.coetzee@up.ac.zaen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2015-03-20T06:13:48Z
dc.date.available2015-03-20T06:13:48Z
dc.date.issued2015-02
dc.description.abstractBACKGROUND : A significant increase in rape victim assessment referrals by the courts has been noted in recent years at Weskoppies Hospital. Rape victims are referred by courts to determine: (i) their competency as a witness; (ii) their ability to give consent to sexual acts; (iii) their mental age; and (iv) their level of mental retardation. These evaluations are done by psychologists and psychiatrists at state hospitals. The findings are reported to the courts in a report format. OBJECTIVES : To present the findings of the reports compiled by psychologists and psychiatrists on rape victims from 2009 to 2013 as they comment on the court’s referral questions, and compare these findings with similar studies done at other psychiatric institutions. METHODS : A total of 108 reports was obtained from the electronic database at Weskoppies Hospital. The findings of the reports were summarised on a datasheet and were categorised according to the referral questions of the courts. RESULTS : In the 68 reports where mention was made of mental age, almost three-quarters found it to be between 4 and 12 years. Intellectual disability was found as the diagnosis in the vast majority of reports. Of these, the most common severity of impairment was moderate (n=22, 21.8%) and moderate to severe (n=21, 20.8%) in nature. Most reports (n=61, 56.6%) found that the rape victims were not able to consent to sexual intercourse. Seventy-one (65.7%) reports stated that victims were not able to testify in court. CONCLUSION : Most reports stated that victims suffered from intellectual disability and their capacity to testify in court was impaired. More than half of the victims evaluated did not have the capacity to give consent to sexual acts.en_ZA
dc.description.librarianhb2015en_ZA
dc.description.urihttp://www.sajp.org.za/index.php/sajpen_ZA
dc.identifier.citationCoetzee, K & Lippi, G 2015, 'Rape victim assessment : findings by psychiatrists and psychologists at Weskoppies hospital', South African Journal of Psychiatry, vol. 21, no. 1, pp. 19-23.en_ZA
dc.identifier.issn1608-9685 (print)
dc.identifier.issn2078-6786 (online)
dc.identifier.other10.7196/SAJP.394
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/2263/44077
dc.language.isoenen_ZA
dc.publisherHealth and Medical Publishing Groupen_ZA
dc.rights© 2015 Health & Medical Publishing Groupen_ZA
dc.subjectWeskoppies Hospital, Tshwane, South Africaen_ZA
dc.subjectRape victim assessmenten_ZA
dc.subjectCourt’s referralsen_ZA
dc.subjectPsychiatric institutionsen_ZA
dc.subjectIntellectual disabilityen_ZA
dc.subjectCapacity to testify in courten_ZA
dc.subjectCapacity to give consent to sexual actsen_ZA
dc.titleRape victim assessment : findings by psychiatrists and psychologists at Weskoppies hospitalen_ZA
dc.typeArticleen_ZA

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