Intimate Partner Violence (IPV): A Public Health Priority for EMS Providers

The discussion includes an overview of this traumatic event and an identification of the barriers victim survivors encounter while seeking medical services for themselves particularly in rural communities. EMS first responders are in almost every community and consist of skilled and trained professionals who make the initial contact with a victim survivor of sexual assault. These teams are in a unique position to respond empathetically to patients in an evidence-based, trauma-informed manner that will pave a way for those victims to get the help they need to maintain their health and take advantage of safer options so they can live violence-free. Practical tools and strategies to build successful partnerships between health care and community-based domestic and sexual violence advocates are included.