Social service providers' knowledge of domestic sex trafficking in the Canadian context

Jacobson, Danielle; Mont, Janice Du; Montemurro, Frances; Bruder, Rhonelle; Mason, Robin

doi:10.1016/j.ssmqr.2023.100279

Cited by 7 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 35 publications

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“…Seven had been in social services for 0-5 years, three for 6-10, and five for more than 10 years. The majority had an undergraduate and/or master's degree (for more details see Jacobson et al, 2023). Four key impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on social service provision emerged (see Table 1).…”

Section: > > Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on caring for sex-trafficked persons emerged during a larger study of social service providers' knowledge, attitudes, and practices concerning service delivery for domestically sex-trafficked persons in Ontario, Canada, which was approved by Women's College Hospital Research Ethics Board in December 2021 (REB# 2021-0133-E; for more detail, see Jacobson et al, 2023). The collective expertise of the research team, including a social worker and senior qualitative researchers, informed the development of a semi-structured interview guide.…”

Section: > > Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…coded the remaining transcripts. Codes were organized into descriptive themes and sub-themes and merged, as applicable (see also Jacobson et al, 2023;Recknor et al, 2023). Field notes, reflexive journals, and frequent team meetings facilitated by senior researchers with expertise in gender-based violence and qualitative research methods contributed to the trustworthiness and dependability of the analysis (Nowell et al, 2017).…”

Section: > > Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impacts of the COVID-19 Public Health Crisis on Caring for Sex-Trafficked Persons

Recknor

Kelly

Jacobson

et al. 2023

Health Promotion Practice

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Background Sex trafficking of persons, a pervasive public health issue disproportionately affecting the most marginalized within society, often leads to health as well as social consequences. Social service provision to meet the resulting needs is critical, however, little is known about the current pandemic’s impact on providers’ capacity to deliver requisite care. Method To examine social service providers’ perspectives of care provision for domestically sex-trafficked persons in Ontario, Canada, during the COVID-19 pandemic, we conducted semi-structured interviews with 15 providers and analyzed these using Braun and Clarke’s analytic framework. Results Impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on social service care provision were connected to individuals’ increased vulnerability to trafficking, difficulties safely and effectively providing services to sex-trafficked persons amid pandemic restrictions, and reduction in in-person educational activities to improve providers’ capacity to serve this client population. Securing safe shelter was particularly difficult and inappropriate placements could at times lead to further trafficking. Conclusion The pandemic created novel barriers to supporting sex-trafficked persons; managing these sometimes led to new and complex issues. Future efforts should focus on developing constructive strategies to support sex-trafficked persons’ unique needs during public health crises.

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Section: > > Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: > > Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: > > Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Impacts of the COVID-19 Public Health Crisis on Caring for Sex-Trafficked Persons

Recknor

Kelly

Jacobson

et al. 2023

Health Promotion Practice

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“…Women's College Hospital's Research Ethics Board approved a program of research on domestic sex trafficking, of which this study is one part, in December 2021 (REB# 2021-0133-E). [10][11][12][13][14] A semi-structured interview guide was developed by multidisciplinary team members with diverse expertise in qualitative research, gender-based violence, sex trafficking, women's health, psychology, social work, and public health. Open-ended questions were crafted to understand health care providers' knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding domestic sex trafficking, several of which were modified from those that comprise the Human Trafficking Myth Scale.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Recommendations to Improve Services and Supports for Domestically Sex Trafficked Persons Derived from the Insights of Health Care Providers

Du Mont,

Montemurro,

Bruder

et al. 2024

JMDH

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Health care providers are highly likely to encounter persons who have been domestically sex trafficked and, therefore, possess valuable insights that could be useful in understanding and improving existing services and supports. In-depth interviews were conducted with 31 health care providers residing and working in Canada’s largest province, Ontario. Results were analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s analytical framework. Across providers, a key theme was identified: “Facilitators to improve care”, which was comprised of two sub-themes, “Address needs in service provision” and “Center unique needs of survivors”. From these results, eight wide-ranging recommendations to improve services and supports were developed (eg, Jointly mobilize an intersectoral, collaborative, and coordinated approach to sex trafficking service provision; Employ a survivor-driven approach to designing and delivering sex trafficking services). These recommendations hold the potential to enhance services in Canada and beyond by reducing barriers to access and care, facilitating disclosure, aiding in recovery, and empowering those who have been domestically sex trafficked.

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“…While the province of Ontario has been noted as a prime site for domestic sex trafficking, accounting for 62% of reported incidents [3,5], the actual scope and scale of human trafficking in Ontario and throughout Canada is difficult to estimate. This difficulty is partly due to the limitations of formal data collection tools; the crime's clandestine and secretive nature; under-reporting by victims due to fear of retribution; stigma and mistrust of authorities; and under-recognition by service providers due to inadequate training and lack of knowledge [6][7][8][9][10][11][12]. Another limitation is that current datasets fail to distinguish between sex trafficking and other forms of human trafficking [13].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the experiences of wellbeing, health, and healthcare among women who have been domestically sex trafficked in Ontario, Canada: A qualitative study protocol

Bruder,

Mason,

Williams

et al. 2024

PLoS ONE

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Introduction Although there is a growing body of evidence to suggest that persons who have been sex trafficked can suffer devastating health consequences and often face challenges accessing suitable care that addresses their health and overall well-being, little existing research has adopted a survivor-informed approach. Centering the voices of sex-trafficked women in this research will provide valuable insights into their health-related experiences and can help lay the foundation for survivor-centric healthcare responses. Methods and analysis Using a semi-structured interview guide, we will interview women who have been domestically sex trafficked in Ontario; recruitment will continue until data saturation is reached. Interview questions and prompts will elicit information about women’s experiences prior to, during, and after their trafficking ordeal, with particular attention paid to their encounters with healthcare providers. Intersectionality theory will inform strategies for recruitment, data collection, and data analysis. Data will be analyzed deductively as well as inductively using Braun and Clarke’s six phases of reflexive thematic analysis. The study’s design was informed by the consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative research (COREQ), which ensures a comprehensive and robust reporting of interview data. We will continue to adhere to the COREQ checklist throughout the data collection, analysis, and findings write-up phases, helping to ensure methodological accuracy and transparency. Discussion To our knowledge, this will be the first Canada-specific investigation to apply intersectionality theory to explore the experiences of well-being, health, and healthcare from the perspectives of women who have been domestically sex trafficked. The results of this study hold the potential to improve responses to trafficking within the healthcare sector. Specifically, the findings could be used to inform the development of education materials and curricula for medical students and continuing professional education for health and allied healthcare providers. They could also inform the creation of patient experience surveys and intake forms for sex trafficked patients.

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Social service providers' knowledge of domestic sex trafficking in the Canadian context

Cited by 7 publications

References 35 publications

Impacts of the COVID-19 Public Health Crisis on Caring for Sex-Trafficked Persons

Impacts of the COVID-19 Public Health Crisis on Caring for Sex-Trafficked Persons

Recommendations to Improve Services and Supports for Domestically Sex Trafficked Persons Derived from the Insights of Health Care Providers

Exploring the experiences of wellbeing, health, and healthcare among women who have been domestically sex trafficked in Ontario, Canada: A qualitative study protocol

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