COVID-19 Structural Transformation and Program Adaptation in Emergency Domestic Violence Shelters

Area of Science:

• Social Sciences
• Public Health
• Sociology

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic significantly escalated domestic violence (DV) incidents globally.
• The pandemic imposed structural changes on social services, particularly emergency domestic violence shelters.
• Disruptions impacted the accessibility and delivery of crucial support for DV survivors.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the experiences of U.S. domestic violence shelter providers during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• To identify the impacts on service provision and the programmatic changes implemented by shelters.
• To understand the adaptations made in response to the pandemic's challenges.

Main Methods:

• A survey was conducted among employees from 103 U.S. domestic violence shelter providers.
• Inductive content analysis was used to categorize the qualitative data collected.
• The analysis focused on organizational experiences, service impacts, and programmatic shifts.

Main Results:

• Six primary themes emerged: increased service demand, access difficulties, shelter environment modifications, technological adaptations, provider welfare concerns, and funding dynamics.
• Shelters adopted innovative service delivery methods, including telehealth and remote work for staff.
• Despite initial challenges, technological integration enhanced service accessibility and provision.

Conclusions:

• Domestic violence shelters demonstrated resilience and adaptability in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Technological solutions, while presenting implementation friction, ultimately expanded opportunities for service delivery and survivor access.
• The pandemic highlighted the need for flexible and technologically integrated support systems for domestic violence survivors.