Victim Services Research Articles

Assessing hospital disaster preparedness: A scoping review of available tools.

One of the problems faced after a disaster is health service for victims and hospitals play a critical role in handling disaster victims. Therefore, hospitals must enhance their preparedness and establish a disaster-safe environment to effectively fulfill their role as a provider of health services during a crisis. The aim of this scoping review was to identify hospital disaster preparedness tools used around the globe and to identify the critical aspects that need to be included in hospital disaster preparedness. This study used the five stages of Arksey and O'Malley's scoping review framework to determine what disaster preparedness tools can be used in a hospital setting. The electronic literature searches of English articles published between 2018 and 2023 were conducted using PubMed, Elsevier, ProQuest, ISI Web Science, and Google Scholar databases. The searched keywords were combined into several search terms such as sub-discipline, subtitle, year, language, and content type. The keywords of sub-title searching were "preparedness", "hospital" and "disaster". After applying some inclusion criteria, ten articles out of 1,221 identified records were included in the final analysis. The World Health Organization (WHO) Hospital Safety Index, WHO Hospital Emergency Checklist or their modified versions, and modified Public Health Emergency Preparedness were tools used in assessing hospital disaster preparedness. These tools evaluate some aspects such as structural safety, non-structural safety, and functional capacity. The studies indicated that each tool used to measure hospital disaster preparedness has strengths and weaknesses in each assessed aspect. Although some tools have been recommended to assess hospital disaster preparedness, assessing each tool validity and reliability are critical and needs to be conducted.

Does utilization of victim services programs influence individuals’ fear of crime? Findings from the National Crime Victimization Survey

Although there is a robust body of literature addressing fear of crime, leading scholars point to the need to further examine the link between criminal victimization and fear. In the current study, we aimed to examine how certain actions after victimization, primarily use of Victim Services Programs (VSPs), impact components of individuals' general, situational fear. Updating early work by Davis, using 2016–2019 National Crime Victimization Survey (NCVS), we found that victims who utilized VSPs demonstrate increased odds of components of fear than those who did not use VSPs. Other relevant findings are also discussed.

Mental health disorder as a risk factor for domestic violence experienced by school children

PurposeDomestic violence is a universal social concern, and its implication on children’s mental health is a global health predicament. Although the aftereffect of domestic violence on the mental health of women is well researched, mental health disorders of children in terms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), conduct disorder (CD), oppositional defiant disorder (ODD), general anxiety disorder (GAD), separation anxiety disorder (AD) and mood disorder (MD) on account of domestic violence is rarely investigated. Hence, the purpose of the study is to investigate the impact of exposure to domestic violence on children’s mental health.Design/methodology/approachTo examine the correlation between domestic violence and mental health among children, in a survey of public primary schools in Ekiti State, Nigeria, the authors employed 664 pupils with simple random techniques. The Multidimensional Domestic Violence Scale assessed the participants’ exposure to domestic violence. The Child & Youth Mental Health General Screening Questionnaire was used to examine respondents’ mental health.FindingsThe results revealed a high incidence of domestic violence among children. It also showed a substantial correlation between domestic violence and the mental health of primary school pupils. Children living with domestic violence experience significantly increased rates of ADHD, ODD, AD, GAD and MD as forms of mental health disorders.Research limitations/implicationsGiven the unpleasantness of this social issue affecting the well-being of children globally, it is imperative to engage in intervention and prevention packages that will assist the victims, perpetrators, parents, teachers, schools and other stakeholders. Introducing counselling services into the primary school curriculum will assist victims and those at risk develop self-confidence that will enable them to report their violators. Although counselors do not diagnose, early detection of victims would assist in early intervention where counselors can use different techniques and approaches to help such victims to resolve all forms of cognitive distortions that can lead to mental health disorders. Counselling services can help in providing referral opportunities to victims or “at risk children,” rehabilitation and follow-up services for victims of domestic violence.Practical implicationsGovernment organizations should also reintroduce health-care services where clinical psychologists will be available in primary schools to provide psychological services to meet the needs of the victims.Originality/valueConclusively, the study presents evidence that children who witness domestic violence face a significant risk of developing mental health disorders. The findings highlight the potential harm that domestic violence can inflict on children’s mental well-being. Mental health conditions such as ADHD, CD, ODD, GAD, AD and MD are commonly observed in these children. It recommends establishing early intervention programs for children witnessing domestic violence in schools and communities and programs to detect and address mental health issues promptly.

Impact of novel psychosocial programming on readmission and recidivism rates among patients with violence-related trauma.

The Victims of Crime Advocacy and Recovery Program (VOCARP) provides advocacy, mental health resources, and educational materials. This study will report complications, readmissions, and recidivism among crime victims, and who used or did not use victim services. Patients engaged with programming from 3/1/17 until 12/31/18 were included. Control groups were patients injured by violent trauma without VOCARP use (N = 212) and patients injured by unintentional injuries (N = 201). Readmissions, complications, reoperations, and trauma recidivism were reported. 1019 patients (83%) used VOCARP. VOCARP users were less often male (56% vs. 71%), less commonly married (12% vs. 41%), and had fewer gunshot wounds (GSWs, 26% vs. 37%) and sexual assaults (4.1% vs. 8%), all p < 0.05. Of all 1,423 patients, 6.6% had a readmission and 7.4% developed a complication. VOCARP patients had fewer complications (4.5% vs. 13.7%), infections (2% vs. 9%), wound healing problems (1% vs. 3.3%), and deep vein thromboses (0.3% vs. 1.9%), all p < 0.05, but no differences in unplanned operations (4.5%). GSW victims had the most complications, readmissions, and unplanned surgeries. Prior trauma recidivism was frequent among all groups, with crime victim patients having 40% prior violence-related injury (vs 9.0% control, p < 0.0001). Trauma recidivism following VOCARP use occurred in 8.5% (vs 5.7% for non-users, p = 0.16). Crime victims differ from other trauma patients, more often with younger age, single marital status, and unemployment at baseline. Complications were lower for VOCARP patients. GSW patients had the most complications, readmissions, and unplanned secondary procedures, representing a population for future attention.

"Are You-?" "Are You?" Queer Advocacy at Contemporary Neoliberal Rape Crisis Centers.

Antirape scholarship has largely focused on survivors and their needs. However, little is known about victim advocates, who support survivors, and how advocates' identities can affect their work. This article draws on semistructured interviews with 23 LGBTQ+ advocates to explore how they navigate their sexual, gender, and racial identities at rape crisis centers today. Results show that LGBTQ+ advocates choose the ways that their sexual and gender identities are visible or invisible at their agency, usually to improve LGBTQ+ survivor services. By examining LGBTQ+ advocacy, this article critically evaluates normativity in antirape work and advocates for a queer transformation of rape victim services.

Experiences of Child Welfare Workers in a Child Sex Trafficking Training

ABSTRACT Child welfare workers are serving victims of child sex trafficking (CST) more frequently in their daily interactions, but they are ill-equipped to understand CST as a phenomenon or how to meet the needs of minor victims. Specialized training targeted to teach child welfare workers about various aspects of CST including risk factors, identification of victims, local and state laws about CST, and services for victims exist but are not readily available or consistent. The current study is a qualitative examination of child welfare workers’ perspectives on CST training in a Mid-Atlantic state. Focus group participants identified 17 key ideas within four themes about the challenges of working with survivors of child sex trafficking, the strengths and value of training, training improvements and ongoing needs, and missing resources for survivors. Policy implications include further child trafficking training for workers, and more specialized income and housing resources for survivors, toward the United Nations goals of empowering women and girls, and building a more just, peaceful, and inclusive society.

Violence against women: addressing the victims’ issues through formal institution

This research discussed a critical issue in the current era, violence against women. It investigated the form of social services for victims of acts of violence provided by formal institution. This study focused on victims' issues regarding violence against women to the National Commission on Violence Against Women. This research was inspired by the implementation of Indonesia Regulation No. 65 of 2005 concerning the National Commission on Violence Against Women. For almost two decades since the regulation was implemented, this research explored the actual implementation of it, especially in this current area where gender-based violence has increased dramatically. Besides that, we critically investigated several factors that attract violence against women, i.e., law and societal patterns. This study used a qualitative method, including in-depth interviews, field observation, and content analysis through formal regulations. It also utilized the theory of regulations' implementation to ensure some aspects, i.e., communication, resources, dispositions, and the organizational structure. The results of this study showed that there is still a lack, especially in the communication aspect. Our findings implied that it could prevent society from utilizing social services provided by formal institutions to access proper justice. Currently, there is no optimal socialization conducted by the Office of the National Commission on Violence Against Women, though it already had some programs. The researcher suggests ensuring proper awareness and knowledge among citizens to make reports regarding gender-based violence is key. So, the mitigation regarding these issues can be tackled properly and inclusively.

Analysis of Rehabilitation Services for Addicts and Victims of Drug Abuse Quality at the National Narcotics Agency of North Sumatra Province, Indonesia

Analysis of Rehabilitation Services for Addicts and Victims of Drug Abuse Quality at the National Narcotics Agency of North Sumatra Province, Indonesia

Victim Service Agency Perspectives on the Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic

Victim service agencies felt widespread impacts from the COVID-19 pandemic on their staff, organizational practices, and client populations. This study offers a qualitative exploration of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic across a broad spectrum of victim service settings, including court-based, mental health, medical, child welfare, interpersonal violence, and advocacy agencies. An electronic survey was completed by Ohio agency workers (N = 170) serving child and young adult victims of trauma. Codebook thematic analysis was used to identify agency and staff experiences, client needs, and changes to service delivery during the pandemic. Results revealed victim impacts in six categories: increases in mental/behavioral health needs, challenges resulting from school closures, safety concerns for victims of interpersonal violence, higher levels of crisis needs, isolation/stress, and service access issues. Agency-level impacts focused on the transition to virtual services, challenges with staffing and resources, worker burnout/stress, and resilience and flexibility. Implications are discussed for organizational staffing and trauma-informed training needs, burnout prevention and mitigation, and client service gaps. Future research should continue exploration of system- and organizational-level adaptation in response to the pandemic, as well as the long-term implementation of trauma-informed organizational practices as a strategy to enhance victim service worker satisfaction and retention.

Experiences of Technology-Facilitated Abuse Among Sexual and Gender Minorities.

Technology-facilitated abuse (TFA) against sexual and gender minority (SGM) adults is a serious though understudied issue. Few studies have examined the types, extent, and perpetrators of TFA against SGMs, and those that have analyzed any of these phenomena have mostly done so with samples of youths. This article offers results of a nationally representative survey on experiences of TFA among a sample of 2,752 U.S. adults aged 18 to 35 years, including 504 SGMs. The prevalence and types of TFA against SGMs were examined using a 27-item inventory capturing six general types of TFA, including surveillance, cyber-interference/communications, reputational harm, monitoring/tracking, fraud, and controlling/limiting access. Respondents could also indicate their relationship to the perpetrator. Results revealed significant differences in the prevalence, types, and perpetrators of TFA against SMGs (compared to non-SGMs), such that SGMs experienced greater levels of TFA victimization, were more likely to be victimized by perpetrators who were not intimate or ex-intimate partners, and were more likely to experience all forms of TFA, except for monitoring/tracking. No significant differences were found for general experiences of TFA victimization between cisgender and non-cisgender individuals or between sexual minority males and sexual minority females. Results thus show that although SGMs and non-SGMs experience similar types of TFA, SGMs experience TFA at higher rates. These findings provide a vital foundation for future work on TFA victimization among SGMs and offer insights for policy and practice, particularly for practitioners and clinicians working with SGMs. Findings indicate a potential need for greater access to health care, victim services, technological support, and legal aid for SGMs due to their increased risk of TFA victimization.

Perceived Barriers and Facilitators to Treatment for Alcohol Misuse Among Survivors and Victim Service Professionals Following Sexual Assault and Intimate Partner Violence.

Survivors of sexual assault (SA) and intimate partner violence (IPV) report high rates of alcohol misuse and often receive services from community agencies. We conducted a qualitative study to examine barriers and facilitators to treatment for alcohol misuse after experiences of SA/IPV among survivors (N = 13) and victim service professionals (VSPs; N = 22) at community-based agencies using semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Survivors discussed seeking treatment for alcohol misuse when alcohol is being used to cope with SA/IPV-related distress and when alcohol use becomes problematic. Survivors identified that stigma and acknowledgment of alcohol misuse are individual-level barriers and facilitators to treatment. System-level factors were also described including having access to treatment and sensitive providers. VSPs also discussed individual (e.g., stigma) and system (e.g., availability and quality of services) level barriers and facilitators to treatment for alcohol misuse. Results indicated several unique barriers and facilitators to treatment for alcohol misuse following SA/IPV.

Stalking victims' decisions to access victim services: A social ecological approach

Victim service agencies provide a wide range of resources and support to victims in the aftermath of crimes. Despite research showing the benefits of connecting victims to service providers, few crime victims access victim services in any form. What remains unknown is why? Using stalking data from the 2016 National Crime Victimization Survey, one in six victims (16%) had accessed victim services in the past year. While the majority of stalking victims who contacted service providers received assistance, 32% did not due language barriers, issues with childcare, and the availability/accommodations of resources. Incident-level characteristics accounted for most of the variance in stalking victims' decisions to contact victim service providers, particularly among victims who suffered financial and professional consequences. Victims were more likely to access victim services if they were women pursued by male perpetrators, stalked by a current intimate partner, attending school, or received referrals from the police or trusted sources of support.

July 2023

July 2023

The truth project paper one-how did victims and survivors experience participation? Addressing epistemic relational inequality in the field of child sexual abuse.

The last 30 years has seen an exponential increase in Historical Institutional Abuse Inquiries. One feature of these has been to place adult survivor voices at the center of Inquiry work, meaning that child abuse victims and survivors are engaging with Inquiries, sharing their experiences, with this participation often presented as empowering and healing. This initiative challenges long held beliefs that child sexual abuse survivors are unreliable witnesses, which has led to epistemic injustice and a hermeneutical lacunae in survivor testimony. However to date there has been limited research on what survivors say about their experiences of participation. The Truth Project was one area of work of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in England and Wales. It invited survivors of Child Sexual Abuse to share their experiences including the impacts of abuse and their recommendations for change. The Truth Project concluded in 2021 and heard from more than 6,000 victims of child sexual abuse. The evaluation of the Trauma Informed Approach designed to support survivors through their engagement with the project was a mixed methods, two phase methodology. A total of 66 survey responses were received. Follow-up interviews were conducted with seven survey respondents. The Trauma Informed Approach was found to be predominantly helpful in attending to victim needs and minimizing harm. However, a small number of participants reported harmful effects post-session. The positive impacts reported about taking part in the Truth Project as a one-off engagement challenges beliefs that survivors of child sexual abuse cannot safely talk about their experiences. It also provides evidence of the central role survivors should have in designing services for trauma victims. This study contributes to the epistemic justice literature which emphasizes the central role of relational ethics in the politics of knowing, and the importance of developing a testimonial sensibility when listening to marginalized groups.

Organizational Readiness and Response During COVID-19: Reflections From a Sexual Assault Agency Serving a Predominately African American Community.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic forced victim service organizations to establish new service provision protocols to include remote/telehealth services. We conducted N = 12 qualitative interviews with sexual assault advocates working in an urban agency in a predominately African American U.S. city to understand how they adapted services to meet the needs of their community. A thematic analysis revealed this organization was under-prepared for prolonged interruption of in-person services. Even though this agency was able to create telehealth options, many clients did not have the financial and technological resources to utilize these services. Advocates reported that survivors expressed a strong preference for in-person services, which afford more privacy and confidentiality. The pervasive digital divide within this urban community limited survivors' access to comprehensive services and jeopardized their safety.

Amplification/Reflection Attack Suppression Using Victim Separation

Amplification and reflection attacks represent flavors of DDoS attacks which use servers such as DNS, NTP, SNMP, SSDP and CoAP as amplifier to launch the attacks. In this letter, we describe a method to minimize the effects of reflection and amplification DDoS attacks by separating the victim service under the attack. We propose three approaches involving container level separation, packet limiting, and network hardware level separation. Our detailed experimental results on DNS based amplification attacks show a near-no-attack performance with an improvement of up to 88% in the test completion time while using the proposed approaches.

Sexual and Physical Victimization and Health Correlates Among Norwegian Adolescents.

Large-scale epidemiological studies have documented that many children and adolescents are exposed to different forms of victimization experiences. However, such population-based studies have rarely examined how specific types of victimization are correlated with health indicators. Thus, we investigated sexual victimization, physical victimization by parents, and physical victimization by peers and their associations with sexual health, mental health, and substance use. We gathered data from a nationally representative sample of Norwegian 18-19-year-old students in their final year of senior high school (N = 2075; 59.1% girls). The analyses showed that 12.1% of the adolescents reported sexual victimization experiences. Physical victimization was more prevalent: 19.5% of the respondents had been exposed to victimization from parents and 18.9% from peers. Multivariate analyses revealed specific associations between sexual victimization and a range of sexual health indicators, such as early sexual intercourse debut, many sexual partners, engaging in sex without contraception while intoxicated, and participating in sexual acts for payment. Neither physical victimization from parents nor from peers were correlated with these variables. However, all three forms of victimization were associated with impaired mental health and potential substance use problems. We conclude that a variety of victimization experiences should be addressed in policies for prevention of adolescent mental health and substance use problems. In addition, a special emphasis is warranted regarding sexual victimization: Sexual health policies should address such potential experiences in addition to more traditional themes such as reproductive health and should also include low-threshold services for young victims of sexual victimization.

Native Missing Persons Cases Will Not be Solved by Police Alone: The Case for "Missing Persons Advocates".

This study explored the potential role of victim advocacy in Native American missing person cases. Interviews with 25 tribal and non-tribal victim/social service providers were conducted to assess their perspectives on the factors which make Native Americans vulnerable to going missing, the barriers and challenges regarding reporting and investigating missing persons, as well as how victim/social service providers might better support the families of missing persons. Findings suggest that advocates perceive that responding to and offering services for Native families who experience a missing loved one will be extremely difficult because of the intersection of isolation, poverty, and jurisdictional complexities among tribal lands, combined with social service providers and law enforcement officers' lack of resources and training regarding cultural sensitivity. At the same time, advocates suggest that additional training and resources could help overcome many of these barriers and see a role for victim service providers in responding to missing and murdered Native American persons. Implications and suggestions for practice are discussed.

Isomorfisme Institusional LPSK dalam Penegakan Hak Rehabilitasi Psikososial Korban Tindak Pidana di Indonesia

This study explains how isomorphism develops in the Indonesian Witness and Victim Protection Agency (Lembaga Perlindungan Saksi dan Korban-LPSK) and contributes to stronger coordination among institutions in administering psychological services for crime victims in Indonesia. This study employs an organizational sociology approach with an isomorphism perspective to determine the robustness of institutions' roles and relationships in providing psychosocial care to crime victims. Using the Soft Systems Methodology (SSM) in conjunction with Textual Network Analysis (TNA), this study discovered that coercive isomorphism in government organizations is the primary driving factor behind mimetic and normative isomorphism, whereas stereotyped isomorphism drives the private sector. Isomorphism emerges to give psychosocial services to victims of criminal crimes, namely as a result of reinforcement from Law Number 31 of 2014 on the Protection of Witnesses and Victims. This reinforcement prompted mimetic isomorphism in many forms of cooperation, and as a result, normatively, it is feasible to claim that LPSK has evolved into a professional institution in delivering psychological rights services to victims of criminal crimes. Furthermore, this study makes recommendations on the role of state institutions and cooperative institutions in satisfying the rights of crime victims in Indonesia, particularly psychosocial assistance.

The impact of pre- and post-trauma financial problems on posttraumatic stress symptoms, anxiety and depression symptoms, and emotional support: A prospective population-based comparative study

Potentially traumatic events (PTEs) are associated with a higher risk of mental health problems and a lack of emotional support. The extent to which pre- and/or post-trauma financial problems further increase this risk, while controlling for pre-trauma mental health problems and lack of support and compared to nonvictims, is largely unknown. To better understand this risk, data was extracted from four surveys of VICTIMS study using the Dutch population-based longitudinal LISS-panel. Multivariate logistic regression analyses (MLRA) showed that nonvictims (nnonvictims total=5003) with persistent financial problems (present at T1 and present at T2 one year later) more often suffered from severe anxiety and depression symptoms (ADS; Adjusted OR (aOR)= 1.72) and lack of emotional support (aOR=1.96) than nonvictims without these problems, and that victims of PTEs (nvictims total=872) with persistent financial problems more often suffered moderate ADS (aOR=2.10) than nonvictims with persistent financial problems. MLRA showed that victims with pre- and/or post-trauma financial problems were more at risk of probable PTSD than victims without financial problems (aORs ≥ 2.02). Victim services and (mental) health care professionals should screen for pre- and post-trauma financial problems and, when found, refer the victims to relevant professionals since these problems can significantly hinder recovery.