Development of Effective Screening and Interventions for Victims of Interpersonal Violence in Healthcare: An Empowerment Model for Targeted Women and Professionals

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a major public health concern for women in the United States. IPV occurs in several forms and leads to many deleterious health outcomes, both physical and mental, for individuals. Due to these negative health outcomes, women are often deemed “frequent flyers” in healthcare, as they present to various healthcare settings at higher rates than nonabused women. As a result of the high prevalence rates of IPV and high rates of healthcare utilization by its victims, several major public health organizations have called for routine screening of IPV to be a standard part of care. However, research suggests that rates of routine screening and intervention for IPV in healthcare are varied and low. Literature suggests that barriers exist at the provider, systems, and patient level that impede providers engaging in IPV screening. Two widely cited barriers to engaging in routine screening were lack of provider training and lack of clear screening guidelines and protocols to follow within the organization. Thus, the goal of the current project was to establish a standardized protocol and guidelines for training healthcare professionals (HCPs) to screen for IPV and appropriately respond to positive screenings. Based on current literature, the training program covers the establishment of clear screening and intervention protocols within healthcare organizations by training providers across various learning objectives, such as knowledge around the nature of IPV (including warning signs, types of abuse, the cycle of abuse, and prevalence rates), how to appropriately assess for IPV (what types of questions to ask and how to ask them in a nonjudgmental manner), appropriate documentation of IPV, how to respond to a positive screening, safety planning, and identification of local resources and referral planning.<p></p>