Domestic violence research to shed light on heightened risks facing survivors amid pandemic

Being cooped up at home in a pandemic presents a series of inconvenient challenges for everyone, but for some, those challenges can be life-threatening.

"There's a whole host of reasons why COVID-19 and other pandemics may be putting abuse survivors at greater risk of harm," said Kendra Nixon, an associate professor in the faculty of social work at the University of Manitoba.

Nixon is the director of RESOLVE, a research network focused on issues involving violence against women and girls.

She and Nadine Henriquez, assistant professor in the faculty of health studies at Brandon University, are researching the heightened risks of intimate partner violence amid the COVID-19 pandemic in hopes of developing better ways to help survivors.

This week, they were awarded $24,700 through the Partnership Engage Grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council to conduct the research.

Two other local research teams also received about $25,000 in SSHRC grants for pandemic-related research.

Stephanie Chesser, in the faculty of kinesiology and recreation management at the U of M, and Michelle Porter, director of the U of M Centre for Aging, will explore public messaging around COVID-19 and its effect on older people.

Roberta Woodgate, a professor in the college of nursing at the U of M's Rady Faculty of Health Sciences, will study challenges young workers have faced during the pandemic. Her project is partnering with NorWest Co-op Community Health and its youth service.

Survivor-informed policy goals

Henriquez and Nixon will partner with the Manitoba government's family violence prevention program, which is the main funder of shelters, resource centres, crisis lines and other specialized intimate partner violence programming in the province.

The project will take place over the course of the next year. Researchers will interview service providers and survivors across rural and urban areas, including Indigenous women, refugees and immigrants, to get a better sense of how intimate partner violence and the pandemic are impacting different groups.

Nixon said the hope is to develop policy recommendations based on talks with survivors about how to improve services in the future.

The increased risks are tied to being stuck at home with abusive partners because of physical distancing and isolation recommendations, Nixon said.

"Also, it's very difficult to reach out for support. How do you call a crisis line if the person who is abusing you is in the same room?" Nixon told Up to Speed guest host Julie Dupré.

Shelters forced to adapt

Early in the pandemic, a number of Manitoba women's shelters reported a greater number of spaces than usual, even as many were forced to reduce their occupancy levels to minimize the potential for crowding and ensure physical distancing.

At the time, organizers suggested that could be a reflection of the increased difficulty of getting away due to abusive partners always being around.

Nixon said women may not have felt comfortable escaping with their children to a shelter out of fear of exposing them to COVID-19.

"Women might've received misinformation from their partner that shelters are not available to them, which was certainly not the case," she said.

Another complicating issue is that many women have lost employment and may not have the financial means to leave right now, Nixon said.

With subsequent waves of the pandemic, it's possible some of the risk factors could recur, Nixon said.

"It's important, now that we have this opportunity, that we look at the research, that we look at the risk so we can develop better policies and practices should a future pandemic or a future surge of COVID-19 surface," she said.

Nixon hopes her research will touch on shelter capacity, remote or virtual counselling options, staffing issues, outreach and education, and safety planning for survivors who may feel trapped at home.

Participation from the province's family violence prevention program is key because as a funder and regulator, the program is key to ensuring that findings are put into practice, she said.

Supports available in Manitoba:

• Manitoba government Stop the Violence program: Toll-free: 1-888-987-2829.
• Ikwe Widdjiitiwin: Toll-free: 1-800-362-3344.
• Willow Place Crisis 204-615-0311 OR 1-877-977-0007.
• Provincial crisis line: 1-877-977-0007.
• North End Women's Centre: Available by phone, online, groups of three or less inside.
• West Central Women's Resource Centre: Appointment only for laundry, showers, crisis support. Urgent visits only. Bag lunches and dinners at door.
• North Point Douglas Women's Centre: Food/coffee/hygiene pickup, visits of 10 minutes or less, five people inside at a time.
• Sage House (Mount Carmel Clinic): Drop-in counselling cancelled. Snacks and hygiene available for pickup at door.
• Wahbung Abinoonjiiag Inc.: Temporarily closed, available over social media and phone.
• Men's Resource Centre.

Anyone facing immediate danger should call 911.