“Boiling water but there's no pop-off valve”: Health care professionals’ perceptions of the effects of COVID-19 on Intimate Partner Violence Open Access
Hendrix, Ellen (Spring 2021)
Abstract
Introduction: Anecdotal evidence suggests an increase in intimate partner violence (IPV) during the COVID-19 pandemic yet little is known about the impacts of movement-related restrictions on experiences of IPV; even less is known about health providers’ perceptions of these same issues. The purpose of this study was to understand the impacts of COVID-19 on IPV from the perspective of health care professionals (HCPs).
Methods: From November 2020 to January 2021 semi-structured interviews were conducted with eight HCPs at a large public hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. Participants included emergency medicine physicians (n=4), trauma surgeons (n=3), and a social worker (n=1). A thematic analysis with both deductive and inductive codes was conducted to identify themes.
Results: Six themes emerged from the eight interviews with HCPs providing insight into their perceptions and observations of COVID-19 movement-related restrictions on IPV. These themes include: (1) COVID-19 movement-related restrictions likely exacerbated IPV; (2) IPV increased (spiked) two times during COVID-19; (3) HCPs encountered many barriers and few facilitators to IPV care provision during COVID-19; (4) IPV patients expressed fears in seeking care but did not delay treatment during the pandemic; (5) relative to the pre-pandemic period HCPs perceived no changes in IPV case presentation or severity; and (6) HCPs suggested specific internal and external improvements for IPV response. Navigating the safe discharge of patients was a primary barrier discussed by HCPs which they attributed to: a lack of community resources for people experiencing IPV; changing policies on testing requirements; fewer admissions into support facilities to observe social distancing; and the closing of a women’s shelter at the start of 2020.
Conclusions: This study deepens the understanding of the impacts of COVID-19 movement-related restrictions on IPV. Findings along with suggestions from HCPs for prevention and response to IPV during pandemics can be used to inform future pandemic preparedness.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1: Introduction 1
Problem Statement 3
Purpose Statement 4
Research Objective and Aims 4
Significance Statement 5
Definition of Terms 6
Chapter 2: Literature Review 7
Intimate Partner Violence 7
Consequences of IPV 8
IPV during emergencies or in emergency settings 9
IPV and natural disasters 9
IPV and humanitarian settings 10
IPV and pandemics 11
IPV during the COVID-19 pandemic 12
Media Reports 12
Rapid Data Reviews 13
Empirical Evidence 14
Reports of decreased IPV resource use 15
Pathways between COVID-19 and increased IPV 16
Health impacts of movement-related restrictions 17
Role of health care professionals 18
Conclusion and added value 19
Chapter 3: Methods 20
Design 20
Instrument 20
Participants 21
Data Collection 22
Data Analysis 22
Ethical Considerations 23
Chapter 4: Results 24
Participant Demographics 24
COVID-19 movement-related restrictions likely exacerbated IPV 25
IPV increased (spiked) two times during COVID-19 28
HCPs encountered many barriers and few facilitators in IPV care provision during COVID-19 30
IPV patients expressed fears in seeking care but did not delay treatment during the pandemic 33
Relative to pre-pandemic period, HCPs perceived no changes in IPV case presentation or severity 34
HCPs suggested specific internal and external improvements for IPV response 36
Chapter 5: Discussion 39
Limitations 44
Chapter 6: Conclusions and Recommendations 46
Conclusions 46
Concurrent response to IPV and COVID-19 46
Build IPV support into future pandemic preparedness 47
Integrating IPV into health care professionals’ education 48
Recommendations for future research 48
References 52
Appendix I: In-Depth Interview Guide 63
About this Master's Thesis
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