Changing Intimate Partner Violence Screening and Intervention: Focus Group Perspectives.

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Women's Health
• Sociology

Background:

• Many survivors of intimate partner violence (IPV) do not connect with professional support services.
• Health care settings offer a potential avenue to improve these connections through screening.

Purpose of the Study:

• To gather data informing the development of an IPV screening intervention.
• To optimize IPV screening within an obstetrics/gynecology clinic setting.

Main Methods:

• Qualitative analysis of focus group transcripts.
• Summative content analysis of discussions with healthcare providers, advocates, and IPV survivors.

Main Results:

• Identified four key thematic categories: current processes, unmet needs, identified concerns, and suggested next steps.
• Analysis revealed specific roadblocks and actionable suggestions for intervention.

Conclusions:

• The study findings directly informed the design and implementation of an IPV screening intervention.
• The intervention included staff training, universal patient screening using a validated tool, and private screening procedures.