230 The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on stress, substance use, and teen dating violence among young adult women in Baltimore City

Abstract

OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Social distancing practices during COVID-19 may impact experience of stress, substance use and violence exposure. This study aims to describe the effect of the COVID-19 stay-at-home orders on stress, substance use, and teen dating violence (TDV) among young women living in Baltimore City. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Study participants were recruited from an observational study examining TDV before the COVID-19 pandemic, through snowball sampling, pediatric and adolescent primary care clinics, the pediatric emergency department, and a registry for patients interested in participating in COVID-19 research. Participants were between the ages of 16 and 22, identified as female, and lived in Baltimore, Maryland. They were asked to complete a baseline survey. March 16, 2020 (Maryland governor’s stay-at-home order) through June 2022 defined the COVID-19 pandemic period. The survey assessed stress experiences, including isolation, finances, job loss, transportation, school stress, substance use, experiences of violence and adherence to COVID-19 safety measures. We conducted descriptive and bivariate analyses. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Participants (n=105) had a mean age of 19.4 years (SD 1.73). Preliminary analyses demonstrate that stress associated with isolation, finances, transportation, and school increased during the pandemic compared to pre-pandemic. In addition, the majority of participants who used marijuana, e-cigarettes, and alcohol used about the same amount or more of each substance during the pandemic. For the next steps, we will examine experiences of TDV for young women during the pandemic and examine whether experiences of TDV differ for young women who reported a greater adherence to COVID-19 safety measures compared to participants who adhered less. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Assessing the impact of COVID-19 safety measures on stress, substance use, and TDV is critical to informing and designing future public health interventions. In addition, the information obtained from this study may be used to address the unique challenges faced by disenfranchised populations while curbing the spread of infectious diseases.