No Quick Fixes

Abstract

Community health workers (CHWs) provide peer support in diverse health care settings, but few studies have evaluated CHW interventions for intimate partner violence (IPV). We assessed the feasibility, acceptability, and safety of CHW outreach in four urban community health clinics and characterized the experiences and barriers to providing safe and effective services for women experiencing IPV. CHWs successfully enrolled and engaged IPV victims, who indicated satisfaction and increased safety with program participation. However, complex psychosocial barriers prevented many from achieving safety and security. More work is needed to assess the impact of well-integrated IPV-trained CHWs in primary care medical homes.