Social workers' perspectives on barriers and facilitators in responding to intimate partner violence in primary health care in Spain

Objective: To identify the barriers and facilitators of managing intimate partner violence (IPV) cases, from the perspective of primary health care (PHC) social workers. Method: Qualitative study through interviews with 14 social workers working in PHC centres in Spain. A thematic analysis approach...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Authors: García Quinto, Marta, Briones Vozmediano, Erica, Otero García, Laura, Goicolea, Isabel, Vives Cases, Carmen
Format: article
Publication Date:2022
Country:España
Institution:Universidad Autónoma de Madrid
Repository:Biblos-e Archivo. Repositorio Institucional de la UAM
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:repositorio.uam.es:10486/718146
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10486/718146
https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/hsc.13377
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:holistic approach
interdisciplinary
intimate partner violence
primary health care teams
social workers
Spain
training
Medicina
Description
Summary:Objective: To identify the barriers and facilitators of managing intimate partner violence (IPV) cases, from the perspective of primary health care (PHC) social workers. Method: Qualitative study through interviews with 14 social workers working in PHC centres in Spain. A thematic analysis approach was applied to identify barriers and facilitators according to the Tanahashi model. Results: The barriers identified by social workers in providing effective coverage to women suffering from IPV included insufficient practical training, a lack of knowledge from women on social workers' roles, a lack of teamwork, and excess IPV case referrals from other professionals to social workers. The identified facilitators were the existence of electronic protocols and good practices including therapeutic support groups and holistic intervention approaches. Conclusions: An excess of referrals to social workers of identified IPV cases following consultation by other members of the PHC team, alongside the lack of interdisciplinary teamwork, does not enable a comprehensive and holistic approach to this problem. Compulsory, practical, and interdisciplinary training in IPV for all PHC professionals and students must be a priority for health agencies and universities in order to facilitate a comprehensive and quality approach for all women suffering from IPV