The Impacts of COVID-19 on Service Providers and Women Survivors of Intimate Partner Violence and Brain Injury

By Sam Kanny. This article was initially published in our Concussion Update newsletter; please consider subscribing.

Intimate partner violence (IPV) affects up to 1 in 3 women over their lifetime. COVID-19 has intensified this problem. Research on the intersection of IPV and brain injury (BI) remains relatively understudied. However, this study, published in Journal of Head Trauma Rehabilitation, focused on improving understanding of intimate partner violence and brain injury. In addition, researchers reported on the unexplored COVID-19 related impacts on service providers and women survivors of IPV/BI. 

Authors Halina Lin Haag et al. utilized the national Knowledge-to-Practice (K2P) network, an online educational service dedicated to improving physicians’ knowledge over their lifetime. Through this network, they were able to identify 24 participants willing to participate in online interviews with researchers. These participants fell into four categories: survivors, executive directors/managers of organizations serving survivors, direct service providers, and employer/union representatives. Through individual or group interviews, researchers found that COVID-19 has increased rates and severity of intimate partner violence, as well as barriers to the provision of services and survivors’ ability to access them.

With the results showing the COVID-19 pandemic has intensified IPV/BI and increased challenges for women survivors and service providers, researchers recommend outreach and adaptation of technology-based services to help provide support for this population. Overall, COVID-19 intensifying the already significant rate of intimate partner violence and brain injury indicates a need for an increase in research to help with resources and interventions. 

For further reading, we recommend the Newswise article about this study on the “shadow pandemic” as well as an interview of the lead study author, Halina Lin Haag, in The Record.