Intimate partner violence (IPV) is one of the most pervasive human rights abuses in the world and the most common form of domestic violence against women. Pregnancy offers a window of opportunity for prevention of IPV through antenatal care. The main objective of the STOP project is to empower pregnant women exposed to IPV through an eHealth solution.
The main impact of the project is the eHealth intervention which will help identify women exposed to IPV and provide counselling and safety planning to combat the abuse and thereby empowering these women. The intervention supports health professionals in identifying pregnant women in need of help through screening during antenatal care, which is an opportune moment to reach women exposed to IPV.
About 85% of the female population in a given country gets pregnant. Therefore, this eHealth solution has the potential to reach most women exposed to IPV. The impact on the target group – pregnant women – is prevention of further violence and a range of adverse effects on both the mother and her offspring, providing the women with a safer path through life.
The project entails three different major activities over the course of 2 years:
- The development and conduction of a systematic risk screening programme
- Development of a video counselling programme delivered by trained healthcare staff
- Conducting a feasibility study of the intervention in antenatal care settings in Denmark and Spain
The project will provide screening for IPV of about 6000 pregnant women. Throughout the project, 300 families will be supported by the eHealth intervention.