Gender-based violence against women during the COVID-19 pandemic: recommendations for future

Abstract

Background Gender-based violence (GBV) includes any physical, sexual, psychological, economic harms, and any suffering of women in the form of limiting their freedom in personal or social life. As a global crisis, COVID-19 has exposed women to more violence, which requires serious actions. This work aims to review the most critical dimensions of the GBV against women, effective factors on it, and strategies for combating it during the COVID-19 pandemic in order to provide recommendations for future pandemics. Methods This study was conducted based on PRISMA-ScR. First, PubMed, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, ProQuest, and Google Scholar were searched in April 2021 with no time limitation and location using the related keywords to COVID-19 and GBV. The searched keywords were COVID-19, gender-based violence, domestic violence, sexual violence, women, violence, abuse, and their synonyms in MESH and EMTREE. Duplicates were removed, titles and abstracts were screened, and then the characteristics and main results of included studies were recorded in the data collection form in terms of thematic content analysis. Results A total of 6255 records were identified, of which 3433 were duplicates. Based on inclusion criteria 2822 titles and abstracts were screened. Finally, 14 studies were eligible for inclusion in this study. Most of these studies were conducted in the United States, the Netherlands, and Iran, mostly with interventional and qualitative methods. Conclusions Strengthening ICT infrastructure, providing comprehensive government policies and planning, government economic support, social support by national and international organizations should be considered by countries worldwide. It is suggested that countries provide sufficient ICT infrastructure, comprehensive policies and planning, economic support, social support by collaboration between national and international organizations, and healthcare supporting to manage incidence of GBV against women in future pandemics.

Gender-based violence and its health risks on women in Yaoundé, Cameroon

“…of female victims which is consistent with previous reports highlighting that physical violence is associated with a range of negative health outcomes, including injuries, chronic pain, and mental health problems [37][38][39][40]. In addition, GBV led to sexual and reproductive health effects, including unwanted pregnancies, induced abortions, gynecological problems, and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV [41].…”

Exploring what lies beneath the tip of the gender-based violence iceberg

“…Another significant finding to emerge from the present study is the impact of mandatory confinement during the COVID-19 pandemic (March-June 2020) on episodes of GBV, estimated at an average growth of 1.25 cases per week (although subarea C might have experienced a growth rate of 3.9 cases per week, according to the corresponding 95% credible interval), a result that is in line with previous studies on the topic (see for instance [17]). Global concern has been expressed about this increase in GBV in relation to the mandatory home confinement imposed as a COVID-19 mitigation measure and a number of recommendations have been proposed aimed at controlling the incidence of GBV in future pandemics ([22]). Unfortunately, the results reported herein cannot be considered exclusive to the specific geographical area for which actual data were analyzed.…”

Preventing Workplace Sexual Harassment and Productivity Loss during Crisis Periods: The Protective Role of Equitable Management

“…For example, women and gender minorities, often discriminated against and marginalized in the workplace, maybe even more vulnerable to WSH during these crises [14]. This may be especially true if commonly available support systems, such as human resources departments or peer networks, are less accessible or affected by the crisis [20]. Finally, studies suggest that crises may decrease the visibility and reporting of gender-based violence [15].…”