COVID-19 Pandemic Impact on United States Intimate Partner Violence Organizations: Administrator Perspectives

The COVID-19 pandemic has increased challenges to intimate partner violence (IPV) service provision. This study aimed to explore administrative perspectives on the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on United States regional and national IPV service organizations.

We interviewed 35 administrators working within state, regional, or national organizations addressing IPV. Interview domains included (1) organizational response to COVID-19, including communication and supporting employees and partner agencies, (2) impact on marginalized communities, and (3) resource needs. We used a hybrid deductive-inductive approach and thematic analysis for coding and analysis.

We identified four key themes: (1) COVID-19 worsened pre-existing challenges and created new challenges at multiple levels within IPV service organizations; (2) IPV service organizations initiated multi-level initiatives to support IPV survivors, their staff, their organization, and their member/partner agencies; (3) Organizations identified changes that should continue beyond the pandemic; and (4) Systemic racism compounded the impact of COVID-19 on IPV survivors and IPV service agencies.

Findings suggest that (1) multi-level responses are needed for robust support of IPV survivors during and beyond the pandemic and (2) a syndemic model that addresses underlying structural inequities may strengthen efforts to support IPV survivors during a pandemic or other large-scale disaster.