Recovering From Intimate Partner Violence Through Strengths and Empowerment (RISE)

Women are the fastest growing group of VHA patients, with their population recently increasing by 80%. Women Veterans (WV's) are at higher risk for IPV than their non-Veteran peers, with that 1 in 3 WVs report lifetime IPV, compared to 1 in 4 women in the general U.S. population. Research reports up to 30% of WVs experience past-year IPV. As a result, WVs are considered an important population for IPV screening and counseling interventions. In response, VHA Women's Health Services (WHS) and the IPV Assistance Program of Care Management and Social Work Services (CMSWS) are implementing IPV screening programs for women and are seeking an effective intervention to implement into care. Extant brief counseling interventions for IPV result in minimal effects on patients' health and safety. A recent review of IPV screening trials highlighted insufficient intensity of post-disclosure counseling interventions, concluding that existing interventions are too brief, unstructured, and generic. Such minimal intervention effects of the current standard of care have led leaders in the field to call for the development and testing of new and more comprehensive IPV interventions, especially for delivery in conjunction with primary care. The Recovering from IPV through Strengths and Empowerment (RISE) intervention fills this need.

The PI, a clinical psychologist and health services researcher with expertise in and national recognition for IPV research and care, has developed an innovative IPV intervention to respond to this need. Recovering from IPV through Strengths and Empowerment (RISE) is based on the healthcare needs and preferences of WVs who have experienced IPV. RISE was developed using rigorous methods, building on the evidence base from the applicant's HSR&D CDA and on input of VHA primary care and behavioral health experts. RISE is based on empowerment, a highly relevant intervention model for women who experience IPV. It is an individualized, variable-length, modular-based intervention addressing key factors:

• safety planning,
• educating about the health effects of IPV and warning signs,
• improving coping and self-care,
• enhancing social support,
• making difficult decisions, and
• connecting with resources. RISE is rooted in empowerment and incorporates aspects of Motivational Interviewing, an evidence-based approach designed to facilitate behavior change that is widely used in VHA for numerous health issues.

This timely research project addresses the critical gap in current IPV care. It will refine and formally evaluate RISE using established methods for rapid and efficient effectiveness testing, including a Hybrid 1 randomized clinical trial (RCT) to evaluate RISE that simultaneously gathers information on barriers to and facilitators of implementation. The study is guided by the first two phases of the Replicating Effective Programs (REP) framework, pre-conditions and pre-implementation. These phases emphasize tailoring interventions with stakeholder input and iterative cycles of pilot testing within routine practice conditions. Use of the REP framework will maximize the likelihood that RISE-should its effectiveness be demonstrated-can easily be integrated into routine care in VHA.

The Specific Aims of this study are as follows:

• Tailor and refine RISE to accommodate differences in service structures and personnel in different primary care settings through input from a Stakeholder Advisory Board, focus groups with WVs (four groups; n=24-32), and qualitative interviews with providers (n=24).
• Conduct a formative evaluation of RISE with WVs (n=up to 20) to inform the development of a user-friendly, tailored implementation protocol and intervention manual.
• Examine the effects of RISE on WVs' (n=60) individual psychosocial outcomes (e.g., empowerment, self-efficacy, health symptoms, service use, and quality of life) in an RCT that compares RISE to an information/referral condition.

3a. Evaluate the feasibility and acceptability of RISE in the context of the RCT.

This study provides the groundwork to examine the effectiveness of RISE. The data will be used to demonstrate whether the effects of RISE appear promising to support a future-large scale effectiveness-implementation RCT, including the range of effect sizes that would be reasonable to expect in a future trial.

The project was originally conducted at two Women's Health Practice-Based Research Network (PBRN) sites that have adopted IPV screening - the Women's Health Centers (WHC) at VA Boston Healthcare System and VA Connecticut Healthcare System. RCT study enrollment was discontinued at VA Connecticut in July 2019 due to low enrollment. The VA Boston Healthcare System serves as the sole site for data collection from July 2019 on and is the sourced of the RCT data.

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in modifications to IRB protocol to switch from in-person enrollment, assessments and sessions. There were several women actively involved in the trial during the initial shut-down. New recruitment and enrollment were temporarily hauled during early months of COVID-19, with virtual enrollment beginning as of July 2020.

Recruitment and enrollment were completed in September 2020 because the enrollment goals were met and the planned sample size was obtained (N=60).

Inclusion criteria

Participants will be eligible to participate if they:

• Self-identify as a woman
• Are at least 18 years of age
• A patient at VA Boston Healthcare System
• Self- reported that they have experienced past-year physical, sexual, or psychological IPV
• Ability to understand study procedures in English
• Not exhibiting symptoms of mania or psychosis
• Not actively in suicidal crisis warranting imminent hospitalization

Exclusion criteria

• Any violation of inclusion criteria