Harnessing Health Information Technology in Domestic Violence in the United States: A Scoping Review

The following scoping review aims to identify and map the existing evidence for HIT interventions among women with DV experiences in the United States. And provide guidance for future research, and facilitate clinical and technical applications for healthcare professionals.

Five databases, PubMed, EBSCOhost CINAHL, Ovid APA PsycINFO, Scopus and Google Scholar, were searched from date of inception to May 2023. Reviewers extracted classification of the intervention, descriptive details, and intervention outcomes, including physical safety, psychological, and technical outcomes, based on representations in the included studies.

A total of 24 studies were included, identifying seven web-based interventions and four types of abuse. A total of five studies reported safety outcomes related to physical health. Three studies reported depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder as psychological health outcomes. The effectiveness of technology interventions was assessed in eight studies.

Domestic violence is a major public health issue, and research has demonstrated the tremendous potential of health information technology, the use of which can support individuals, families, and communities of domestic violence survivors.