Pregnant Women's experiences with intimate partner violence one year after the COVID-19 pandemic in Jordan.
Sanaa Abujilban, Asma'a AbuAbed, Lina Mrayan and 5 others
PMID 36826391WHAT IT FOUND
Pregnant Jordanian women reported high intimate partner violence during the pandemic.
Control and psychological abuse increased. Physical abuse stayed the same, and sexual abuse was lower. Antenatal care teams should expect IPV.
Key findings
01During the pandemic, 75.9% of the women reported controlling IPV and 69% reported it before; 64.2% reported psychological IPV during the pandemic and 59.9% before.
02Control IPV mean scores were higher during the pandemic than before (9.78 vs 8.95, p = 0.002), and psychological IPV mean scores were higher (7.03 vs 6.62, p = 0.050); physical and sexual IPV mean scores did not differ significantly.
03Physical IPV during the pandemic was inversely associated with woman's educational level, marriage duration, woman's employment status, and level of mutual understanding.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The study used convenience sampling at one center, so the findings may not apply to all pregnant women in Jordan. Participants were younger, more educated, and more employed than the general population of ever-married women in Jordan. IPV data were self-reported and relied on memory of experiences before and during the pandemic, which can cause recall bias and misclassification. The study was cross-sectional, so it cannot show that the pandemic caused changes in IPV. The paper did not test whether antenatal screening, counselling, or referral reduced IPV or improved outcomes.
Declared interests
The paper states there was no funding and the authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that the pandemic caused IPV or that screening reduces harm. The study was cross-sectional, used a convenience sample, relied on recalled IPV, and did not test an intervention.